The Wolf Knight
by Inuzuka Notori
Summary: ShizNat and others, AU and OOC. A world on the brink of destruction as humans train soldiers in controlling spirit particles, wolves who oppose them to save the planet, and the hybrids caught in between. M for violence/deaths. See profile for full summary
1. Legend in the Making

Disclaimer: I don't own Mai HiME.

A/N: Hurrah I'm not dead! I realized I needed an outlet for my action mood and after a while I came up with this. Then it took me a while to outline it but hopefully because of that there won't be plot holes and inconsistencies. This isn't a Wolf's Rain crossover fic, but I did use some elements of it. One more thing! When it comes to their clothing please use suspension of disbelief and assume that they return intact.

**Chapter 1: "Legend in the Making"**

The moon hung towering in the midnight sky over a cursed city. It had not seen sun in years, not since humans began their research. A lone wolf moved through the streets, lightly stepping through puddles while following her target.

_It's because of you…_ Natsuki thought to herself, watching a woman get into a luxurious car, _It's because of you they died!_

The navy-furred wolf watched as the vehicle sped up. Her resolve to kill sounded in her ears to the beating of her heart; pounding stronger as she picked up her pace. She followed her target through the streets, waiting for the moment to strike. Everything was going according to plan, from the turns to the street light timing. The car reached a lengthy strip of road that led up to a large skyscraper; in exactly two minutes it would pause at a red light. No one would be around.

The wolf darted out of the way of a light stream and increased her speed tenfold. She darted toward the lone building along the otherwise empty road and with impressive technique ran up the side. Upon reaching the rooftop, Natsuki walked to the edge that overlooked the street that the car would be on. Her emerald eyes peered over the awning and focused.

The car slowed to a stop and waited for the light to turn green again. The animal's claws dug into the surface as it dove off the roof at the car.

Natsuki leapt onto the hood of the car, denting it enough to break the engine. Steam hissed as it touched the rain, surrounding the figure of the snarling beast. She glared through the windshield at the screaming driver before throwing herself at the glass. In one blunt thrust of her shoulder, it shattered around them and the driver who was too frightened to move became victim to her fangs.

"What the hell is going on!?" yelled the blonde woman as she opened the panel separating the two sections of the car. She came face to face with Natsuki's blood dripping teeth.

"Shit!" The woman leaned back as fast as she could, barely dodging the snapping jaws. The only thing that caused Natsuki to miss was the fact that she could not stay balanced on the hood and lean forward enough. Instead she got a mouthful of seat cushion which she promptly spat out before turning her attention to the blonde who had now gotten out of the car.

The wolf jumped off the car at her target that stood there, appearing to be holding something though it could not be seen. Just as Natsuki was about to make fatal contact, a massive spiked club formed in the woman's hands. In a swift batting motion, the wolf was smacked away in mid air, causing her to tumble through the mud.

"Like that'll stop me!" she growled, standing up and ignoring her wounds.

"Come on then!" taunted the woman as she readied her weapon. On cue, Natsuki jumped at her again, this time aware of the weapon she was up against. She dug her teeth into the wood of the club, attempting in vain to snap it. Instead it allowed for the woman to pivot on her heel and let go of the bat, sending the wolf soaring through the air. Natsuki skid back through the dirt upon landing, all the while keeping focus on her foe. As expected, the club she had bitten into had vanished from around her, while a repaired version of the weapon had materialized in the woman's hands.

If only she hadn't stayed still for that moment. If she had not stopped, none of it would have happened. A frightened voice of warning cried out.

"NATSUKI!"

_Shizuru?_ Three loud shots were fired. The fighting came to a sudden halt as the wolf toppled over onto the road, blood seeping out of her lungs. Natsuki's vision began to blur, trying to see was making her dizzy so she closed her eyes and listened.

"Now now Suzushiro-san, you shouldn't play around like that. If I hadn't intervened she could have killed you."

_A man…?_

"Oh shut it! I was doing fine!"

"If you insist," said the man as he leapt off the rooftop, sniper rifle resting on his shoulder for a second before disappearing into thin air, "Let me clean up this mess, you can take my car."

The blonde huffed and walked away, leaving the wolf alone with the man who approached her. He crouched down by Natsuki and placed a palm on her wounds.

"Immortal until slain right?" he mused, feeling the resonating aura around the creature slowly fade. "Spirit particles… We can only manipulate it, you _are_ it. Is that where your arrogance comes from, wolf?"

"My arrogance?!" snapped Natsuki, though too weak to act, "We never did anything to you! You started this when you began overusing spirit particles for your own selfishness! That's what killed so many of us so of course we're going to fight back!"

"That's not how the people see it."

"Because they are sheep! They always follow what they're told!"

The man silently retracted his hand and washed it in a puddle of rainwater.

"Next time! I won't fail!" snarled Natsuki, earning a chuckle from her foe.

"You think there will be a next time?" he smirked as a pistol materialized in his hand, taking the spirit particles directly from the wolf's aura, causing her to wince in pain, and he took aim at her head.

The animal's glowing emerald eyes stared fiercely down the barrel of the gun, "…I'm sure of it!"

"So confident, even as you die," the man lifted his arm resting his elbow on his knee with the gun pointing up, "You don't have to you know, I have a proposition for you."

"I don't wanna hear anything from you!"

"Tch." The man turned on a dime and fired into the darkness surrounding the lone building. A painful yelp echoed through Natsuki's head. "So you'd take her in death with you?"

At the snap of his fingers, a guard dragged out a sandy-furred wolf by the heels.

"Shizuru!" with a rush of adrenaline, Natsuki leapt up and sunk her fangs into the man's extended arm. Even as blood spurted from the limb, he still was able to hold up the dead weight and toss the navy-wolf away to lie next to her unconscious friend.

"Take my help. I have an experiment in progress and now is the time when live subjects are needed. Now I can leave you both here to die, or you can become a part of this project and be injected with a serum that will save your lives."

"I'll take death any day over the help of a human!"

"Really? I guess it's just too bad for her then, to have gotten caught up in this and die because of your reckless actions."

Natsuki shifted her vision to the tan wolf beside her. She cringed. Her honour was pulling her in two directions. The man pulled a syringe out of his coat pocket and hovered over her neck. Just as she was about to snap at it, Natsuki's heart shifted.

_No_... she told herself, _Letting a comrade die… that's even less honourable than accepting help from your enemy. One must always do everything in their power to save their friends; otherwise they are equally a murderer._

And so, with a heavy sigh, the navy wolf relaxed her muscles and let herself be injected.

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_It's cold… Shizuru…? Are you cold?_ Natsuki weakly opened her eyes and looked around. The sterile scent indicated that they were inside, but her eyes were able to confirm that this was a lab of some sort. Above her was a series a bright florescent lights and to the side was a glass wall enclosing an observation deck. She stirred briefly, but mustered enough strength to roll over and get up onto her knees.

_My knees?_ She asked inwardly before looking down in shock. Natsuki screamed as she fell off the table and scrambled to the other end of the room. Now in a cold sweat, the girl looked down at herself shivering at the sight. Her legs were sprawled out in front of her, long and hairless; she raised her arms in front of her face, observing her fingers as they moved. She started to feel around her face, noting the smoothness and flatness.

Tears began to well up in the girl's eyes as she looked ahead. In front of her were two metal tables placed side by side. One was empty, presumably hers, and the other had another figure covered under a sheet. Natsuki shakily got to her feet, using the wall to keep her balance. She took a moment to get steady and walked toward the other table.

"No…" she choked out, looking down at the person before her, "…What… What have I done to us?!"

Just then a familiar voice came over a sound system, "Ah you're awake. It seems the experiment was a success!"

Natsuki's eyes darted around the room and soon focused on the observation deck. She now got a closer look at the man from before. His wavy black hair matched his suit, and was followed by another man who opposed this colour scheme.

"Let's get introduced first. I am Kanzaki Reito, leader of the First District organization."

_So that's who it is… The one who started this… The first human to be able to use spirit particles as a weapon…_

Reito then turned to the man behind him, "Nagi will explain to you now the progress of the experiment."

The white-haired man, clad in a lab coat, approached the microphone and looked over at the two girls in the room below him.

"You two are the first generation of hybrids: wolves turned human. The serum seemed to have worked on the surface, you have transformed into humans as you can see, which will allow you to be the ultimate soldiers."

"What?!"

"You still have the nature of wolves, to produce spirit particles effortlessly. Now, as a hybrid, you also have the power to harness them and manipulate them into weapons as a human would. You are not limited like either wolves or humans are… you are unstoppable."

Natsuki closed her eyes in concentration as her hand unconsciously found Shizuru's and held it tightly.

"Unstoppable you say? And you didn't expect retaliation?"

"You misunderstand. The experiment is complete. You are free to leave whenever you wish. Of course we will continue to observe you, but you are not forced to stay here."

Natsuki looked behind her and saw two guards open the door.

"You best be careful if you choose to leave. Winter is on its way… and you're humans now."

The girl cringed, "We can handle winter! I can't believe I was stupid enough to put both of us through this! I knew better than to ever trust humans and the second I stray from that this happens! Stay out of our way!"

Despite her lack of practice on two legs, Natsuki managed to lift the still unconscious Shizuru over her shoulder and leave. If it weren't for the nausea and muscle weakness she swore she would have killed those two. Though for now, even she knew that the best option was to run. To get as far away from the First District and sort things out wherever that may be was the safest option.

Meanwhile in the observation deck Nagi raised an eyebrow, "Oh? I didn't expect her to leave. Forgive my ignorance."

"You did your job. The serum worked. Continue as planned." Reito ordered while walking away, "Though if this information leaks and gets in the hands of Searrs, you will be the one to pay."

"Of course…" replied the scientist with a natural uneasiness before turning back to the security monitor to watch Natsuki take her leave, prepared to face the autumn chill clothed in only a thin hospital gown.

As soon as she made it out of the building's constricting hallways, Natsuki focused all of her strength into her legs and ran. She ran as far as she could through the dreary city, too fast for anyone to see. It appeared that even in human form the girl retained her physical abilities as a wolf.

_So that's what he meant… a wolf's power comes from within and effects natural abilities, but that power can only be used in it's raw form. Humans however can manipulate its raw form, but can only take it from the world outside of them… So as a hybrid we can do both…_

Natsuki cursed again and continued to launch herself forward by the decameter. Soon she reached the bridge that led off of the island city. She stopped to take rest and look at the horizon but was distracted when Shizuru began to stir awake.

"…Natsuki?"

The girl placed her friend on the ground, but held her up when she wobbled on her weak legs.

"Where… What… What am I?"

The girl stared solemnly into ruby pools and pulled her fiercely into an embrace.

"I'm so sorry!" she cried, "I did this! I turned us into humans! I disgraced us! I'm sorry! Hate me if you want, I deserve it!"

The older girl looked down at her fingers that laced themselves through Natsuki's hair, quickly becoming accustomed to their movement. Shizuru listened carefully to the girl's words and pulled herself from devastation with a meek smile.

"How can I think about hating you when I'm overjoyed you're alive?"

Natsuki's breath hitched and shivered, "But… we're… we're them!"

Shizuru shook her head, "Our bodies may be cursed, but our hearts are not… Now let's get inside, look, there's a building over there that looks unused."

Before Natsuki could protest she was whisked away by her friend's hand towards what appeared to be an abandoned loft.

In a short time they arrived and with a forceful kick from Natsuki the door broke from its hinges. She swatted away the dust cloud and led the way in crouched onto all fours before lying down on her side.

"My back aches like hell from standing like that."

"I suppose we have to get used to it," commented Shizuru as she followed though still standing upright before sitting down cross-legged, "What happened?"

Natsuki looked away; she couldn't bear to face her friend, but knew she had to at least explain what she had done.

"The leader of the First District… this… Kanzaki Reito… He shot both of us and said that if I made myself be an experiment for him he would save our lives… I was ready to die and accept my failure in avenging our parents… But you should not have been involved. I couldn't let you die because I acted alone… So I agreed… So foolishly I agreed… and it got us turned into… into them!"

The blue-haired girl began to fall into all out sobbing onto her forearms. She still was stretched out length-wise along the ground and was unaware of someone slinking up behind her. She took in a short breath when she felt a warm hand wrap around her waist and pull her close.

"I know you too well to try and get you to not feel guilty… you will always feel how you will… But just know that I do not blame you for it… However, it's only us now… I think it's for the best… if we were to feign death."

Natsuki turned her head, "What makes you say that?"

"The same thing that made you not cross the bridge back then. We both know it, that our pack would not allow for humans to be in it; even if we were wolves once… we… aren't anymore. Though I know for a fact I will never call myself a human either."

"And neither would I!"

"So we must stay true to our hearts… and accept our unalterable bodies."

"Not unalterable."

"N?"

"He said we're hybrids… That we can regain some of our abilities or something like that…" Natsuki's voice started to grow weak, "I'm sorry… But I'm so tired… Just let me rest for a while…"

The younger girl inhaled deeply and, exhausted from her weeping, she began to drift into sleep.

"Go ahead," whispered Shizuru as she pulled azure tresses back from Natsuki's face, "It's going to be alright… somehow… I know it will…"

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**Two years later…**

As usual, the rain fell over the city in the form of a light mist. It was not as though thunderstorms were always raging, but simply that the sun would never shine. Small droplets hit the windowpane of a coffee shop with a relaxing musical frequency. Unfortunately it fell onto the blunette's deaf ears as she furrowed her brows at the streets beyond.

_Not a day seems to go by without that memory plaguing my mind…_

"Natsuki?"

"N?"

"Are you alright? You've been staring outside for quite a while now."

She sighed and lifted her coffee to her mouth for a drink, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired is all."

The crimson-eyed girl moped, "You find our date so boring that you're falling asleep?"

Natsuki cringed, "Shi-Shizuru! Who said this was a date?"

"I'm sorry, I thought it was implied when the two of us went for drinks alone together and only one paid." Shizuru replied while holding her wallet up in front of them.

"Fine fine… If that makes you happy then you can call it a date." Natsuki snorted as she began rocking her chair back and forth, "Can we talk about business though?"

The older girl sighed and held onto her teacup. Here she was hoping to finally get an official date out of this girl and it turned into yet another meeting. She didn't mind too much though, they were already together all the time. Although in most of that time Natsuki would always be talking about business or revenge. She could hardly ever smile, at least not for real, but it was understandable.

_You always carry that guilt don't you?_

"Ah yes, business. Some of the cats have told me that something has been brewing between the lower ranks of Searrs and the First District."

"You mean their "street gang" division?" Natsuki mocked.

"This is bigger; otherwise I probably wouldn't have bothered with it, these two fight all the time after all. But no, this time Searrs' Miyu is said to make an appearance."

"What? Why would they send their second in command?"

"That's what we have to find out. It's all centered on a train shipment, which is what Miyu was sent to oversee go through. The First District's only part in this is seems to be to cause them trouble and disrupt their advancements; which is why the most we would have to worry about are foot soldiers from them."

Natsuki closed her eyes in thought, _whatever they have that's so important… we need it._

"So what's the plan?" asked the blunette, "I say we hijack the train."

Shizuru sighed, "Rash as usual… For Miyu to be there means she will have her elite guards, not to mention basic guards for the area. Even _we_ couldn't defeat that many people. No, all we do is get on the train and steal what we can and get off before it reaches the station."

"Alright fine we'll play it safe," grumbled Natsuki before smirking, "If you call jumping onto a moving freighter 'safe'"

The two chuckled and got up to leave. Natsuki led the way out of the shop, a few steps ahead of Shizuru who was putting on her jacket. She closed her eyes for a brief moment while flipping her hair over the collar and was about to speak when,

"Nao!" shouted Natsuki as she bolted out the door of the coffee shop.

_What?!_ Shizuru quickly followed, "Natsuki where are you going?"

All she caught was the navy-haired girl darting into an alleyway and the clang of metal. She got to the corner just in time to see her friend soar from a dumpster to the roof of a building.

_Mataku…_Shizuru looked around for a moment to make sure no one was able to see her make the same high jump and vault herself over the ledge. She expected Natsuki to at least be on the same building, but she had already gotten quite far ahead. With a groan the older girl ran to the edge of the roof and kicked off, crossing the gap easily.

Meanwhile on Natsuki's end, she was so close to a red-haired figure. The fact that this figure was also able to jump across buildings just as swiftly gave away the fact that she was not some ordinary human.

"Damn it slow down will you!"

The figure turned her head around, eyes widening in shock when she saw herself being tailed so closely. She skid to a halt in the gravel and moved completely to face Natsuki who had just landed.

"Who the hell are you!?" shouted the flame-haired girl.

"Nao… It's me… Natsuki…"

"…" Lime stared into emerald, as if to search for the slightest bit of proof that this girl was who she said she was.

"I know this isn't how you remember me, but just give me a chance to explain-"

Before she knew it the illusionary guise of a human girl faded and a wolf with white and red fur leapt at Natsuki. The latter quickly parried the attack with an arm block while jumping to the side, though the bite in her limb began to leak blood; if only for a moment.

"Look!" exclaimed Natsuki as she slid up her sleeve, revealing her already healing wound. Surrounding the repairing tissue was a large patch of blue fur which slowly disappeared once the gash was closed.

Just then, Shizuru bounded onto the rooftop next to Natsuki. Instead of reprimanding her for taking off so quickly her train of thought was cut off when she saw the wolf before them.

"Nao…" she muttered.

"No… you… you're dead."

"Only in a metaphorical sense," said Natsuki as she rolled her sleeve back down, "As you can see, a lot of unfortunate incidents have happened."

"You're humans…"

"No I'm not!" snapped the blunette angrily before composing herself again, "We're hybrids. Not enough of a human to be on their side, but not enough of a wolf to be accepted in a pack; which is why we didn't return."

After Nao had calmed down, Shizuru and Natsuki explained everything that happened.

"Of course, they're responsible for doing this to you," the wolf grit her teeth, "They'll pay for this my friends, at least if I have anything to say about it."

"You do not hate us then, for having this form?" questioned the eldest.

"No. It is unfortunate, but you know that enough already. I don't blame you though."

"So you'll keep our secret?"

"Yeah, I suppose it is for the best that you two are made to appear dead… at least for now," Nao turned to Natsuki, "As long as you promise to take your rightful place when this is over."

The girl's emerald eyes focused on the gravel below her.

_My rightful place…? There is no place for me there anymore… not after what I've done… especially not the position of a leader…_

Not taking the girl's silence too seriously, she knew her well enough to know what she was thinking; Nao placed her human illusion on herself once more.

"I have to get back now. My time here in the city was limited and only to take out some obstacles by the tracks."

"You're going after the shipment too?"

"Yeah, something's abuzz and I'm not just going to sit back. Still, there wasn't much I could do other than change the track direction. It's not much, but it will lead into the Northeast station instead of the Southeast one like they had planned. But knowing them, their intelligence personnel have already figured that out and new plans are being made as we speak."

"Don't worry; we'll take care of the rest. The next time you get a chance come to the city and we'll let you know what happened."

"Got it." The girl turned to jump off the roof, "It's really good to know you're both alive…"

The pair watched she Nao left and then looked at each other.

"Well then, let's get ready for the show."

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The winds on the bare plains surrounding the city were rough, swirling sand and dust in the girls' faces. They traversed the bridge and further into the deserted area. Their only guide was the set of tracks that seemingly lead into nowhere. The night sky was covered in clouds, though it was too dry out here to rain. The pair watched the horizon carefully, waiting for their cue.

After only ten more minutes, a light beamed in the distance and slowly grew larger.

"That's it," stated Shizuru as she closed her eyes and bent over to balance herself on her hands as well as her feet. Natsuki did the same. They clenched, flexed, and shook; bones snapping as they shifted into their most powerful forms. From the base of their spines grew large bushy tails while their respective midnight and maple tones covered their skin in thick fur coats. Nails and teeth elongated into claws and fangs, and ears moved to the top of their heads, though quickly pinning back to avoid the blowing sand.

The two hybrids then stood bipedal again, easily their former size and a half. They focused on the incoming vehicle and kicked off the ground. The roar of the train's engine grew louder as the pair closed in on it. They allowed for the first few cars to pass before leaping with all their might onto the side of the train. Using her large claws as anchors, Shizuru hung onto the side of the metal while Natsuki peeled it open.

Once a large enough hole was made they moved inside and began their search.

"We only have about ten to fifteen minutes before it begins to slow down. As soon as we feel it, we get off. By then we'll be a safe enough distance away from the guards." instructed the older of the two.

"Right, then let's get started."

Over their limited span of time, the two werewolves moved from car to car, but found nothing other than standard supplies. Needless to say, they destroyed what they could of that, but it made them wonder why this was important enough for Miyu to be overseeing the transfer.

"Damn! Whatever it is is probably in the last car! Do we have time?" asked Natsuki as she broke through another doorway into the next car.

It took no more than a punch for the side of the car to break and Shizuru peered out to check.

"If we ignore everything else we can, but I think it's worth it."

"Right, we trash what we can until we get to the end."

And so crate after crate was tossed around and smashed, leaving practically no supplies left to be picked up at the station. Finally they reached the end, and as predicted, found what they were looking for. Or well, a sign of what they were looking for. The last car had a massive wall in the middle of it. Several locks and chains bolted the iron closed, but it would take much more than some bars to stop Natsuki's determination.

She began ramming herself into what appeared the weakest point but it didn't budge. When that didn't work she tried pulling at the chains though could not get more than one broken before the train began to slow.

"Natsuki we have to leave!" Shizuru urged while she picked up some papers from a drawer, the only piece of furniture on the entire train.

"No! We have to find out what's behind this!"

"We don't have time!"

Suddenly voices could be heard shouting a few meters away. Apparently some soldiers had been on board and finally made it through the wreckage. Two of them leapt forward, swords materializing in mid-jump, prepared to strike. However they were easily knocked aside by the back of Shizuru's hand and fell unconscious when their heads smashed right through the metal wall.

The train was almost at a stop, "We have to go!"

Natsuki snarled as she realized her efforts had been in vain. She knew they could not fight off all the guards at the station, and the only way to avoid that would be to get out now. However her mind kept her frozen in place, she did not want to leave this unfinished.

"Argh!" Shizuru's patience was wearing thin, she wasn't so much angry at Natsuki's lack of movement, more frightened. She clawed into the metal and cut a straight line down to the floor. She grabbed the papers in one hand and Natsuki in the other before diving out to safety.

They rolled in the dirt for a bit before coming to a complete stop. After some deep breaths of much needed rest, their bodies returned to their human shape. They lay on their backs, looking up at the deep violet clouds.

"Did you get the papers?" asked Natsuki between heaves.

"Yeah," Shizuru held up the folder, "It's still intact."

"That's good."

"Don't scare me like that again. If we had stayed on any longer we would have been caught."

"…I'm sorry. We were so close to finding out what it was though."

"There's probably more information in here, we'll check it when we get home."

"Yeah," Natsuki groaned a bit as she stood up, "Let's go. I need a good sleep."

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The girls returned to their loft, which over the years had been made to accommodate them both. The rooms were renovated, albeit poorly, and they had the minimal furniture and but no utilities. Luckily heating wasn't a problem since the building was equipped with a fireplace, however getting everything else had been a problem. Without jobs or the desire to get them, they had to resort to Natsuki's basic method of robbing. Though the beds and sofa had been from the garbage and she assumed no one would want them anyway, food and money had been outright stolen. Although through Shizuru's insistence, they only stole from aristocratic organizations and not from the common people.

Natsuki fell back onto the couch lazily and kicked off her shoes while Shizuru went immediately to the kitchenette to fix herself some tea. When they were both ready they sat side by side on the sofa and eyed the set of papers on the table. The navy-haired girl clenched her fist to get rid of her anxiety before taking initiative and opening the file.

She gasped and immediately picked it up with both hands to make sure she was reading correctly.

"What? What is it?"

Natsuki stayed silent for a moment, her eyes racing across the page. It appeared to be a profile. Statistics of all sorts were listed next to three pictures. She had seen all she needed to see and loosened her grip on the folder, letting the papers fall onto the floor while still staring forward.

"Natsuki?" Shizuru leaned down and picked up one of the papers, "What does it say?"

"…They've… made more like us."

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A/N: So how'd you like the first chapter? I know it might be kinda confusing so if you have any questions about the AU just ask me in a PM or review and I'll reply when I can.


	2. For You

A/N: When I have them say "our parents" I mean their two set of parents respectively. They aren't sisters (just in case anyone got confused). If you like Takeda, then don't read this... But if you don't like him, enjoy!

I know I should probably work on my other two fics which I started first but I don't have inspiration for them. Just letting you know I haven't given up, only put aside for a while.

**Thank you to mrerice, krugern, Silver Ice Bullet, NSKruger, ALEXISSA2, rainee-chan, lindred, and everyone else who read! -hands out cookies-**

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**Chapter 2: "For You"**

While Shizuru read over the basic statistics of this new "subject", Natsuki read the qualitative observations aloud.

"Her name is Mai. She lived in the southern mountains…" her eyes scanned the rest quickly, "What is this?!"

"What?"

"It says that she… she volunteered for the experiment…"

"You think you can trust them not to stretch the truth with that matter?"

"It says why, and her reason would make sense… It's similar to mine… It's written in here that her brother was killed by the First District, so to get revenge on them she volunteered to become a hybrid for Searrs,"

"I'm guessing she thought they would be more likely to give her enhancements if her goal was to fight the First District…"

"Yeah, she probably wanted to use the hybrid power against them," another paper slipped out from the pile, "Eh?"

Shizuru caught it in mid-air and held it up to read.

"More statistics… during initialization it seems."

"How are they?"

Over the past years of becoming adjusted to human lifestyle, the older girl had taken a liking to reading. She would usually come back from libraries with science books or newspaper articles relating to weapon manifestation or hybrid technology. Shizuru educated herself enough to know what it was that made for good transformation.

"They're surprisingly low. Maybe it was because she was mentally prepared but… no… her heart rate even _dropped_ during the procedure," she flipped through the pages and stopped at the final note with a heavy sigh, "It appears they've made advancement on the serum."

"What kind of advancement?"

"…One that takes away all sensations, instincts… and memory…"

"So… you're saying that she went in a hero, ready to do anything to avenge her brother, and ended up a drone?!"

Shizuru looked away from the tears pooling in the navy-haired girl's eyes. She wanted to say something to comfort her but couldn't find the words. There were no words. It was Natsuki's worst nightmare to see that one of her kind had been lured into losing her freedom.

"She doesn't even remember why she joined them?"

"No, and judging from the summary of the serum itself, she either doesn't know who she's taking orders from, or she isn't even aware she's taking orders at all."

Natsuki slammed her fist into the wall, feeling the sting of paint chips penetrating her wound. Her muscles tensed and released on a rough but steady rhythm. She pulled her arm away and dusted the debris away from her already healed skin.

"We have to get her back."

Shizuru perked her head up to face the younger girl.

"What?"

"You know as well as I do she was what was behind the door on the train, it's only right that we get her back. We were so close to saving her but couldn't so we have to now."

"But Natsuki, she won't even know who or what we are."

"So?!"

"There's no guarantee she won't kill us on sight either!"

"I'll take that risk if it's to save someone!"

"I WON'T LET YOU!" shouted Shizuru, eyes shut tightly, gritting her teeth as she reached out and grabbed a hold of Natsuki's arm.

Her eyes pleaded for the girl to not do this. She had dealt with Natsuki going after unguarded shipments or low rank soldiers but straight into enemy territory? She wouldn't stand for this any longer.

"You can't base your life around finding leads to avenging our parents! You're letting everything else slip away if you stay stuck to revenge. Eventually you will even lose your own mind!"

"I'm not doing it for them anymore, it's to protect y-" but Natsuki was cut off.

"It's not rescuing Mai that I'm against Natsuki… It's you constantly putting yourself in harm's way! It scares me so much to think of anything ever happening to you!"

Natsuki stared down at her friend.

_I'm an idiot…_ she thought to herself.

"You may be able to stand being alone but I can't. I can't lose you!"

By now she was crying.

_I'm sorry. I know I can't lose you either…_

"I'd be so lost, so helpless!"

_So would I._

"I can't let anything happen to you,"

_I will protect you._

"Because I love you!"

"I love you too."

A gentle warmth rose to the surface of both faces, with both bodies seemingly frozen in time. Natsuki's words had been so sudden she didn't even realize it was a response to another's declaration; while Shizuru on the other hand had not expected any response, certainly not a confession. They let themselves get lost in each other's eyes, enjoying the adventurous travels into their souls.

With a calm smile, Natsuki was first to move; taking a seat next to Shizuru on the sofa. She slid her fingertips over the porcelain skin before gliding into soft chestnut hair.

"I didn't think it would be so easy to say," her palm held the back of Shizuru's head and tenderly moved her closer, "But I do… I really do…"

And their lips met.

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A trail of scattered clothing was left in the wake of the couple who now lay in a dreamy state beneath the covers of Natsuki's bed. Shizuru snuggled up close for warmth, resting her head on the bluenette's chest beneath her chin.

"Ureshii..."

She felt her head bounce up slightly when Natsuki chuckled.

"Me too," she replied with a smile while gently stroking Shizuru's hair, "We unfortunately _will_ have to get up at some point though..."

The older girl shook her head and tightened her grip around the other's waist.

"No we don't. We can stay like this forever," she looked up into Natsuki's eyes with a grin.

"But..."

"But what?"

A low rumbling noise was heard mid-way down the bed, Natsuki blushed.

"...I'm hungry..."

"Ara, but didn't you just eat?"

The blunette raised an eyebrow in an innocently confused expression. Though as soon as she was met with lusty eyes her face turned beet red and she turned away, trying to scramble out of the bed.

"H-h-hentai!"

Shizuru failed holding back her laugh and slowly retracted herself and got up, pulling a sheet up with her, wrapping it beneath her arms. Natsuki gazed at her beloved's fluid strides towards the doorway. She quickly followed into the kitchenette, taking the larger blanket with her, draping it over her shoulders like a cape.

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Together they made up a simple breakfast of toast and eggs, eating while standing at the counter. The pair found themselves staring into each other's eyes many times, but would always glance over at the coffee table. There was a reason neither suggested eating over there. They wanted this feeling to last, and figured that maybe, if just maybe they left the stolen file on the table it would never arise again.

After gathering the articles of clothing spread across the room and dressing properly, it was time to focus again. Shizuru sighed as she picked the photos and notes up from the floor and piling them neatly in the folder. Last night made her realize something: she would say, do, or be anything to make Natsuki happy. If that meant helping her in her revenge she would do it.

"I'll go with you," she said, looking at Mai's pictures again.

"I thought you didn't want to be a part of this anymore?"

"I changed my mind. I want to be with you... always. If that means in a battlefield... then that's where I'll be," those crimson eyes radiated a sort of sad seriousness, "But I still hope you will be careful."

Natsuki sighed.

"I don't want to do anything you don't want-"

"No. I've made my decision. I know you want this, so I will help you. Not to mention I do hope there is a way for her to be saved."

"...Thank you."

Shizuru merely nodded and headed for the door.

"I take it you already have a plan?" said Natsuki as she pulled her gray hoodie over her head.

"Not yet, we have to go walk around town. We'll see if anyone knows anything."

"Sounds simple enough, let's go," the young girl said, linking their arms and heading out.

_You smiled today..._

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The two girls walked side by side through the streets, getting bumped by people running in swarms. It seems they did not have to look around much to find something of interest. Far ahead they saw a smoke cloud rising, in the same direction townspeople were running and sirens were heading.

"Argh! This is getting hard to navigate!" without a second thought, Natsuki held onto Shizuru's arm and leapt up onto an awning then onto a roof; leaving nothing but a small cloud of dust behind. People nearby would have a hard time noticing what just happened because they were so fast, especially distracted by the commotion ahead.

Soon enough they reached their destination: a demolished building with First District officers controlling the scene. The main area was roped off while the area appeared to be searched while soldiers yelled warnings to the public not to come closer.

Suddenly a man climbed up onto one of the police cars with a megaphone.

"Everyone please calm down. I am Masashi Takeda of the First District. What you see before you is the remains of a base held by the ruthless Searrs Organization. We are sorry for causing such a disturbance but it was for the safety of the city that such scum was dealt with. We promise to continue our search for more cells in hopes of making this city safer for everyone! Thank you for your understanding!"

And the crowd roared with cheers.

"Look at them, talking like this was some plan to save the city when really it's because Searrs is their rival." Natsuki scoffed.

"Now now Natsuki, can't you see how easy this became? Our target just showed himself openly."

"So you're saying we follow him and kill him?"

"No... I'm saying we follow him and get him to spill everything he knows..." Shizuru paused, "Then kill him."

The blunette chuckled.

"So how do we get a hold of him?"

"We herd him of course. He may have more meat on him than the rest, but he's still a sheep."

Without another word the older girl leapt off the edge of the roof into the crowd, followed by Natsuki. Both landed without a sound or a hair out of place, and with the mob as riled up as they were they couldn't even tell who came and went from beside them. The pair pushed through the swarm and followed Takeda away from some media folk.

This guy was the spokesman for the First District... who acted like a playboy. For the past year he had been trying to get a job with the conglomerate, but had no useful skills. Finally it was decided to appease the man and use him as the mouthpiece, though to know what to lie, meant he had to know the truth. The position went to his head; and when his ego inflated, so did the target on his back.

Takeda smiled and waved to the people, offering tidbits of information to reporters along the way. When he reached the end of his imaginary red carpet he was pulled aside by a crimson-eyed beauty who gave him a sweet smile.

"Hello Masashi-han, would you like to go for a drink with me?"

Meanwhile Natsuki was close behind shooting daggers at Takeda with her eyes. Her brooding expression and cool aura encouraged most to avoid her, but of course this guy was not as intelligent. Instead of focusing on the girl closest to him, the man craned his neck over Shizuru's shoulder.

"Will your friend be joining us?" he asked with a wink.

Natsuki flinched.

Shizuru on the other hand wasn't entirely sure whether to be relieved, protective, or offended at this question; but settled on resourceful.

"Of course she will. Right Natsuki-chan?"

Natsuki's jaw dropped slightly as she took in a deep breath. She wasn't about to be happy with this arrangement.

"Sure, if I have to," she grunted, leading the way to a bar.

_So dreamy..._

Takeda followed her with his eyes which eventually pulled his legs forward at a dumbstruck pace; leaving Shizuru to walk behind him and make sure nothing went wrong.

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By the time they reached the bar, Shizuru walked up to one of the bouncers next to a door. She held out a small bundle cash.

"We would like one VIP room and drinks coming every five minutes."

The large man flipped through the bills for a moment before opening the door and leading the trio down the dimly lit hallway to an empty lounge.

They sat down in the smoky area and waited until their drinks came. As promised, Shizuru was the one to do the talking and all Natsuki had to do was sit back and not hurt anyone until the right time. Unfortunately all of Takeda's attention was on her.

It had taken a good bunch of hard drinks to finally get Takeda where they wanted him. The man was so drunk that he was feeding them information, albeit jumbled with useless knowledge.

"You know!" hic, "That Kanzaki thinks he's so cool!" hic, "But he ain't! If he was so good he wouldn't have gotten his thingamabob stolen!"

Natsuki eyed him cautiously.

"Is that why you blew up the Searrs building, because they stole something?"

"No no no! That was a warning! Kanzaki said 'tell the people about our cleaning up plan'!" hic, "So people think we be going after Searrs all the time! If they don't give Kanzaki the thing we'll blow the base! Then I'll be famous!"

_The thing must be Mai..._

Natsuki looked over at Shizuru.

"Are we done here? We can go to the base during the fighting and see if we can get in to see Mai with the main guards being distracted."

"Aww yer leavin'?"

"Why don't you come with us?" the older girl suggested with a sly grin as she walked to the doorway.

Natsuki walked close behind her with Takeda constantly fumbling for her hand. Knowing what was coming, the girl didn't fight it too much; instead she only tried to walk faster. The bouncer at the front noted their leave and the three headed out to what was now the dark city, lit only by the sepia of streetlights.

The two girls lifted each of Takeda's arms over their shoulders and started leaping forward.

"Whoa! What the hell?!" exclaimed the man.

The two girls remained silent as they ran forward at full speed. Once they were a safe distance away from the bar and any other potential witnesses they slowed down, stopping in the shadows of an alleyway. Natsuki cracked her shoulders and neck, eyeing Takeda closely. However hammered he was, he seemed to have forgotten his little "ride" and again started to reach for the girl's hips.

Before he could get a single step closer, his hands were sliced off by the crimson blade of a pole arm. Takeda howled in pain for no more than a few seconds before the cutting edge split apart into a vine and wrapped around his neck. With the flick of her wrist, Shizuru shifted her grip on the naginata and constricted the vine, severing his head.

It fell to the ground with a thud causing Natsuki to jump back a tad to avoid it. She looked over at Shizuru who stared at the fallen corpse with an annoyed expression as she held her weapon at her side.

"I could have taken care of him you know."

The older girl sighed and dispersed her weapon.

"Well now, it seems we have only one thing left to do."

"Right," Natsuki nodded, "Again... Thank you for doing this."

Shizuru looked over and smiled before using a boost in speed to dart behind the blunette.

"Anything for my Natsuki," she whispered into her ear and kissed down the side of her neck, then took the younger girl's hand in her own, "Come."

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As planned, the pair crossed the city to the Searrs main base. It was on the edge, but not too far. It seemed like your average business complex and had not been subject to police raids since all illegal activity was done away from the headquarters. They waited on the rooftop and watched. Soon they heard cars driving up both crossroads, no doubt the First District soldiers. Right on cue, Searrs soldiers exited the building and charged at the vehicles.

Even though they were on foot, Searrs' fighters, known as "Einherjar," were a lot rougher with their style than the clean-cut First District, rushing was their specialty. Many transport trucks tried to plough through the masses but were slowed. The Einherjar materialized their clubs and swords while smashing the cars as the soldiers began firing their guns.

Bodies started to fly as the two groups continued their clash.

"If they just kill each other this will be a lot easier," mused Natsuki as she watched the battle like it was a television show, legs dangling off the roof.

Shizuru sat leaning against the ledge with her arm rested on the bricks.

"Oh?" her eyes widened, "They're bringing in the siege already."

"What?"

A blinding flash lit the area as a tank fired a missile into the building. The ground shook causing Natsuki to fall back onto the gravel of the roof before perking her head up. The headquarters was now missing a chunk out of its side, but not toppling yet; though another tank was approaching from the opposite direction. The two girls ducked behind the ledge and heard the tank fire although they had not anticipated what came next.

A loud whistling noise rose to their ears as the missile soared into the sky and exploded. The pair looked down to see a large red werewolf with her arm extended in the direction of the vehicle; clearly having just deflected the projectile; behind her stood a small blonde girl who watched the scene proudly.

"It's her!" gasped Natsuki.

----------------------------------------

Violet eyes stared blankly ahead at the tank, smoke rising from her burnt arm as it healed. Both soldiers and Einherjar stopped briefly to stare in awe at the hybrid. She flicked her ears and glanced to the side, her gaze falling on the other two of her kind. Mai snarled a bit and started to turn when the girl behind her spoke.

"Mai, in front."

Immediately the werewolf turned her attention to the tank ahead that fired again. Just like before, Mai swung her arm against the missile while letting out a roar of might. The rocket was sent flying into the building which Natsuki and Shizuru were standing on. The pair fell with the rest of the debris, but transformed in the process thus taking hardly any damage. They climbed out, tossing bricks aside, expecting to be attacked but Mai was fixed on the target assigned to her.

She bolted for the massive vehicle and leapt on top of it. Mai dug her claws into the cannon and tore it from the main section. Then, turning slowly to build up momentum, she let go and sent it crashing into the other tank. In a massive combustion it killed all of both organizations.

"Such destructive power," murmured Shizuru as she watched.

Natsuki was not so much observant of Mai's actions, but that look in her eyes. That dull lifelessness... that even in such a state she could sense sadness. She couldn't take it anymore. Abandoning cover, the navy-furred hybrid ran up to her auburn counterpart.

"Mai!" called Alyssa from the distance.

The drone-like being turned her attention to Natsuki by way of throwing a massive fireball at her. She barely managed to dodge, grinding her claws into the ground so as to change her angle. As she ran forward again, this time Shizuru entered the fray as a distraction. It worked; Mai turned shifted focus onto the second foe enough time for Natsuki to grab her by the shoulders. Luckily in their struggle it appeared the latter was the stronger of the two, managing to hold her ground.

"Mai! Listen to me! They are your enemy!"

Mai growled and bit into Natsuki's shoulder, making her falter slightly but still not enough to completely give.

"Ugh... Mai! Please! Don't follow them!" she yelled into her ear, "For your brother's sake!"

For a second she felt the teeth start to remove and looked over to see Mai's reaction. It was still expressionless, but in the silence she showed no sign of hostility. However, she still seemed to be stuck, as if trapped between two minds. The one in her brain which told her nothing but follow orders, and the one in her heart which was supposed to be dead.

"See? Come with us Mai, you'll be safe and everything can be fixed."

"Mai!" barked the small girl, forcing a lone tear from the lavender eye.

"Takumi... It... Hurts..."

Natsuki's eyes widened as Mai snapped back into her _robotic_ mentality. Again she bit into her other shoulder and this time using all of her upper body strength, tossed Natsuki away.

Despite the hybrid's healing abilities, the bites were too deep for it to happen so rapidly. Though before she would hit the ground Shizuru leapt over and caught her in mid-air.

"Are you alright?" she asked, worried, as she laid Natsuki on her back.

"Yeah," she groaned trying to snap her crunched shoulders back into place, "It will just take some time. Finish the girl."

"The only one who will be finished here are you two and this building," said Alyssa as she sat in Miyu's arm, she turned to the cyborg, "It everything important moved to the new building?"

"Yes."

"Good," she turned, "Mai!"

On command, the red hybrid jumped from her position to stand in front of Alyssa, though left enough space for the girl to see.

"I really must thank you two for bringing the First District's experiments to light. Without knowledge of your existence we could never have stolen the failed serum and improve upon it. Since you have already gotten yourself in enough of our business, as well as the fact that you'll be dead soon, I'll introduce you. This is Mai, a perfected hybrid: the same as you, but actually useful. She will stay by my side if I will it, she will fight if I will it, and she will even die if I will it. The good thing about not having one's hybrids run rampant like you is they can be trained. I would like to present to you the result of Mai's training in element manifestation."

Without thought, the red-brown werewolf took a few steps forward and waited for the exact order.

"Meet with us at the pier when you are done with them. Go, Mai!"

Natsuki watched as Miyu took off in an instant, taking Alyssa with her. All three were able to use their heightened sense of smell to know when she was far enough away. The midnight-haired hybrid struggled in the tan-one's arms trying to stand.

"We need to stop her!"

"Natsuki we have to run!"

Mai stared dead ahead.

"...Kagutsuchi..."

In an instant a column of flames erupted around her, turning the concrete to molten rock and melting the nearby metals. Shizuru tried to carry Natsuki away, but both of their breath had been taken by the technique, lungs filling with hot ash. A howl echoed into the night sky, blasting the column into miniature meteorites and leaving Mai to be enveloped in the remaining blaze.

With another roar she raised her arms, extending the fire around her as two large arms that smashed the pair trying to flee into the ground. They winced in pain and looked up through the dust to see the two claws hands about to crash down on them.

Shizuru instinctively threw herself on top of Natsuki, taking the brunt of the hit. She gripped the ground tightly acting as a shield against the impact on her back. The arms of flame reached their ends, leaving the singed creature to tremble above the other before collapsing on top of her.

Seeing the pair immobile and even start to revert back into human form, Mai calmly dismissed her fires. Without anymore hesitation she turned and leapt away into the dark, headed for the piers.

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A few hours later, now in the early morning, Natsuki started to move. Her hand twitched unconsciously before she started clenching it on her own.

_So heavy..._

She thought as she tried to breathe. Slowly she opened her eyes, tears started to form when she saw Shizuru lying motionless on top of her.

_No...!_

The girl tried to move herself out from under, but couldn't find the strength. Sirens wailed in the distance, signalling the arrival of the First District backup... more like clean up.

_Shit! If they find us we'll be caught again!_

"Oi! Natsuki!" called a voice in the distance, footsteps coming closer.

The girl turned her head to see Nao along with two other pack mates come running up.

"You're alive?! Good! Help them up!" she commanded.

The wolves did so, carrying the two on their backs.

"Nao... Shizuru... she... ughh..."

"I'll check it out later, right now we gotta go."

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Back at the loft, the wolves placed the two girls on their bed, Natsuki was face up, never taking her eyes off Shizuru who lay face down.

Nao stood next to the latter and checked her wounds.

"Some broken bones, probably torn muscles too. You may want to turn around Natsuki…" however the blunette did not comply.

With a sigh Nao used her teeth to pull up the back of the girl's shirt, revealing a large charred area of skin.

"That should heal in time, like your burns. The main concern is that it seems that she must have poured all of her energy into her core, making her into a block of extremely dense spirit particles. It probably overloaded her system, making it hard for any life force to move inside her. The only thing that will tell is time. We'll stay here for the night and make sure you're okay."

"...Thanks."

When the three wolves left the room and went into the main living area to rest, Natsuki looked over at Shizuru's body. She watched the slow rise and fall of her ribs, smiling at proof of her life. Her smile faded once again when she shakily raised a palm to the other girl's cheek.

"All this... for me... how could you? Why would you?" the tears came again.

A smile grew across Shizuru's face, moving as much as she could to nuzzle the girl's hand.

"If it's for my dearest one... I will do anything..."

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A/N: oo Dark Mai... still not the "Dark" character I'm gonna enjoy the most... but you'll be introduced to her next chapter -waves hand dismissively- And just to clear it up if you needed, "Kagutsuchi" is the name of Mai's "Final Move" I'm not sure if I'm going to make everyone have one, and even if they do they won't always be named after the Child. Kagutsuchi just fit because he was a god of fire.


	3. Dogs and Angels

A/N: Damn I always do this… write stories then forget to let you all know these tiny details lol. -Ahem- anyways this time it's that the ages aren't what they were in the series (except the Searrs people). The First District people are mid-twenties and the wolves are all like… 100 years old or more but look like they do in the series.

**mrerice:** Thanks for saying the timing of them getting together was right. I didn't want it to be rushed, but I didn't want to have the whole story drag out with the thought of "when is it gonna happen?"Although I'll be honest in saying that I didn't know if it was canon that Alyssa was Natsuki's sister when I planned out this story, so she won't actually be playing that large of a role other than head of the Searrs organization.

**Thank you to mrerice, elfspirit7, ALEXISSA2, lindred,****and everyone else who read! -gives you… hmm… lingerie picked from Natsuki's collection! There, that should make people happy lol-**

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**  
Chapter 3: "Dogs and Angels"**

White noise echoed from a screen on the wall. The minimal but sufficient surveillance footage of the previous night's events finished playing back.

Thud. Nagi was thrown into the wall, landing in a sitting position against it. A claymore's blade thrust into the concrete, no more than a centimetre away from the silver-haired man's ear. He tried to get up but his shoulder could not pass the sword.

"Would you please explain to me how this happened?" hissed Reito from his throne-like chair while a woman, only a few years younger than him, pulled her sword from the wall and balanced it at her side with the tip on the floor to hold its weight.

"I-I don't know! Probably one of the soldiers was a spy and hacked into the computer!"

"So you're saying I pay both you and my guards for being nothing but incompetent fools?"

"N-no! Just let me explain! I already have the serum you requested completed!"

"Oh?"

Nagi slowly stood up, trembling at his superior's glare. He walked over to the observation desk and began changing settings on the control board. In the lab below, an unconscious wolf was raised on a table while a technician walked into the room with a tray of materials.

"She will still take a while to wake up, but as you wished, she will have emotional capabilities that can be shaped as we wished."

The blonde woman who stood by Reito's chair scoffed.

"Really… Why keep their emotions? It would just get in the way."

"On the contrary Suzushiro-san, emotions will make them stronger. It's not like they will have their own feelings of course, but we will train them to love or hate what we do. With the two most powerful triggers in them, they can unleash more power than any of those Searrs robots."

Haruka rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, walking towards the window to watch the procedure.

"Either way, we're still one step ahead," said the man as he got out of his chair and went to exit the room, followed by Haruka who had seen all she cared for, "I leave him to you."

The two executives left the room as the woman still inside turned to face Nagi and gripped her blade.

"Hai. Ani-ue."

The man had nowhere to run to, the door had been locked and the lab below was too far to jump to. Not to mention against Mikoto's attack he could not run far enough fast enough. She held the claymore in both hands, with the tip balanced on the floor. With the slightest release of power, two crimson eyes opened on it causing an unavoidable wind to slice Nagi's body in half, vertically. The two pieces of his corpse folded away from each other as they fell to the floor. With a bored sigh Mikoto lifted the sword onto her shoulder and left the room, ordering the two guards at the door to clean up the mess.

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The gentle sound of rain hitting the window woke the sleeping Natsuki. Her eyes fluttered open and she took a second to look around the room to gain her bearings. She then looked to her side and smiled when she saw that Shizuru was still there and breathing softly. The girl lifted herself off the bed and stretched, swinging her arms across her body, enjoying the fact that her shoulders were in one piece again.

Natsuki walked out into her living room to see Nao and the other two wolves sitting around and talking.

"Ah you're up."

"Yeah," Natsuki mumbled as she sat on her couch with the rest of them, "I'm healed now, but I don't know about Shizuru."

"Well she's alive. She may just be paralyzed for a while."

Natsuki nodded silently. She didn't want to think about her love being paralyzed, even if it was only temporary. It was because of her that they went to fight Searrs and ended up in this situation.

"Hey, don't have that face when she wakes up."

"Huh?"

"If she wakes up and sees you so depressed she'll take even longer to recover."

The blunette chuckled.

"Right."

"Natsuki?" a sleepy voice called from the bedroom, "Where are you?"

The girl in question swiftly ran from the living room to Shizuru's side. She placed a hand on her back to comfort her while she crouched down at face level.

"I'm here."

"Natsuki…" she muttered while smiling.

The blunette returned the loving expression and walked around the bed to sit on the other side. She knelt beside Shizuru and rolled up the back of her shirt. As expected the burn was healed.

"Can you move?"

Red eyes clenched shut as she tried; only managing to rotate her neck and clench her hands.

"Don't stress it, here," Natsuki reached over and turned Shizuru onto her back, "Is that better?"

"Yes, a lot more comfortable."

They sat enjoying the silence, as well as trying to think of what to say next. Finally,

"I'm glad you're alright," they said simultaneously before laughing.

Natsuki heard the rain stop. She lay down on the bed next to Shizuru, pulled her close, and then leaned in to kiss her.

"I'm going to go buy some food and stuff. Nao will be with you in case anything happens but I shouldn't be too long."

The older girl nodded and let the blunette slip away out the door. Natsuki walked over to the main door and put on her shoes and hoodie.

"I'll be back soon."

"Got it," said Nao as she turned her head around to go back to sleep.

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_Odd… Not many people usually come outside… even during the day…_

She looked up and sniffed the air.

_Still cloudy… But the rain will start up again…_

Natsuki shrugged off the weather situation. It could be worse, but still… with two organizations of human weapon-materializers in this town the life was being drained right out of it.

"Hello Natsuki-chan."

The girl spun around. She stood face to face with the Obsidian Lord; or so he was called in certain circles. The hairs on the back of her neck rose and her lip curled, making no effort to hide her rage.

"What do you want?" she barked, only to be met with that same sickly sweet smile.

"Before you do anything stupid like last time, take note of the fact that there _are_ more people on the roads today; the extras would be my guards."

Natsuki remained still but continued snarling at him.

"I saw the video of last night's events. Pretty impressive army Searrs intends to build right? Would you mind telling me some things about the fight?"

"I'm not about to sell out Mai!"

"Sell out? Oh no I was just wonder what you thought of her. To be created so recently and already manifest such powerful flames; you've had your powers for what, two years? And still you cannot make anything."

She cringed. In truth it wasn't that she could not, but refused to.

"Not using your human abilities makes you achieve only half of your potential."

"Like I care! I still have enough in me!"

"Unless you start using your human powers, you will always remain at the level where you failed. See? Last night Shizuru-san, who has accepted her abilities, got hurt again when you probably could have-"

That did it. Natsuki leapt forward, grasping Reito's throat with her hand. He remained still, but various "bystanders" jumped into action pointing their guns at the girl. The man tried to speak but couldn't form coherent words aside from a taunt.

"Is your pride really," gasp, "...Worth more than her?"

Natsuki froze. She didn't tighten her grip, nor did she loosen it. So many things tried to fight their way into her brain. All the memories of times she could have fought better if she had a weapon in hand. The times when she told herself she would use this power against the humans who did this to them. The fact that deep down she still had not accepted the truth, that somewhere she hoped that with her revenge she would return to normal.

Memories from last night appeared.

_If I could have made a shield… she wouldn't have had to be mine…_

"_If it's for my dearest one… I will do anything…"_

_How can you say that so easily?_

"_Because Natsuki... Pride isn't worth anything if you're dead. You can't do anything with it then. Can't you see? Your honour isn't all that is important; it's how you get it too."_

_So you're saying that even if I use human abilities... if my intentions and uses are for the better... I won't lose myself?_

"_Precisely. So you ask why I would do anything? Because what's important to us, first and foremost, is protecting the pack. Where is the honour in taking death when avoiding it will give another chance to save the ones you love! Choosing death is the easy way out! Live with the curse you're plagued with and fight on! If for no other reason than you are a wolf meant to protect others! YOU'RE TOO GOOD FOR DEATH!"_

Natsuki loosened her hand and pulled it back, her hair falling over her eyes as she looked around at the guards for a moment before looking back at Reito. The guards lowered their weapons and Reito slowly rubbed his throat. The girl's heart had changed.

"You think I haven't figured you out?" she asked, her voice coated in darkness, "You think you can manipulate me into feeling any guiltier about this? It's all empty words just to get me to react right? I mean, I am only an experiment to you. Rebilling is what you want to see."

She balled her fist and glared at him fiercely.

"Know this Kanzaki! I won't be duped by you anymore! I'll protect her with all I have, cursed or not I would do it! Because I am wolf! We protect our loved ones at any cost! No matter what the sacrifice! Any honour you think I'd lose over this I'd earn back tenfold for protecting her!"

Her eyes began to radiate a powerful, superior aura.

"...A human like you has no idea what you're talking about when you bring up a wolf's pride."

Natsuki used pure speed to vanish only to appear extremely close beside the man, a gentle wind blowing a single strand of hair as Reito only stared wide-eyed at the place the girl had been standing.

"...Know your place... dirty creature."

Without another second wasted her first smashed into the bottom of his chin; the uppercut cracking his jaw, blood spewing across the street. The girl hadn't snapped like this in a long time, but Reito's words had forced a very rare face of hers to surface... very rare, and very sinister. Natsuki looked around at the soldiers without fear, with the confidence that nothing could harm her.

One shot at her with a pistol, the bullet lodging in her shoulder. The girl's face twisted into a wicked grin as she peered down at her wound then back up at the soldier. She reached in and pulled out the hot iron, crushing it in her fist. The man took a step back, about to start firing full force but was too late. Natsuki had already leapt next to him, holding his face in her palm and smashing it into the concrete; flattening his skull.

Her rampage was cut short when the girl noticed she was surrounded. The judgement that had been clouded began to shine again. Shizuru was depending on her. She promised not to get into a dangerous situation.

_She ended up paralyzed for me... The least I can do is respect her wish and stay back when the odds are slim._

Luckily her crouching position led the soldiers to aim low, when all it took was one straight upward leap to avoid the bullets. Natsuki landed on the side of a building for a mere second before diving down and leaping into the crowd. She knew the First District would not take the chance at harming an innocent person, so under the cover of the townspeople she could flee safely.

The guards cursed aloud but lowered their weapons. They rushed over to the still unconscious Reito's side, called over their car, and headed back to the headquarters.

----------------------------------------

The front door swung open and Natsuki walked in, placing the bags on the kitchen counter before going to check on Shizuru.

"I'm back!" she said with a bright smile, too bright.

Shizuru was now sitting up with her back against the headboard and waved at the girl who came in. 

"Wow! You sure you can move?" the blunette asked cautiously as she hopped up on the bed, giving the girl reunion kiss.

"The only things that still hurt are my legs," she grinned, "Which means I can still hug you!"

Natsuki's eyes widened as the older girl leapt at her with open arms and a jovial smile. She was pulled into Shizuru's embrace surprised butit quickly faded as she returned the affections. They remained holding each other for only a few more minutes until hearing some shuffling in the kitchen. The blunette quickly got up to see Nao and the other two wolves tugging one of the steaks in different directions.

"I found it first!" growled the red one, "I get to eat it first."

The other two didn't listen and continued pulling.

"Errm, actually I found it first, so it should be mine," said Natsuki as she walked over to the other bags and pulled out two more steaks, "And I bought enough for everyone."

She tossed them to the group who ate them eagerly. They had not fed themselves for quite some time, having waited for Natsuki to wake up. The girl continued going through the other bags, taking out two pre-made plates of sushi and putting it onto ceramic dishes. She replaced the wooden chopsticks with their own plastic ones then filled up two glasses of tea. Surprisingly managing to balance all of that in her two hands while navigating around her guests, Natsuki closed her bedroom door behind her and sat on the bed next to Shizuru.

"Ara did Natsuki make this?"

"Of course!" she lied while hurriedly eating.

"I can tell when you're lying," the older girl said calmly while sipping her tea.

Natsuki choked on her food and gulped all of her tea at once to wash it down, despite the fact that it burned.

"Ah gomen... I bought it... but you know I'm horrible at cooking! I just wanted you to have a nice finished product no matter who made it."

Shizuru smiled.

"Thank you."

The two finished eating and placed their dishes on the nightstand. Natsuki sat against their pillows and pulled Shizuru on top of her. They took a relaxing sigh and closed their eyes; again their moment was ruined.

"Oi!" called Nao as she pushed open the door and hopped up onto the bed.

"Gah! Announce yourself first!" exclaimed Natsuki as she tried to get out of this position.

"Relax would you? She already told me; which is why I came in here to tell you that since you're good we're going head back."

The blunette nodded and thanked them, getting up only for a moment to close the door behind the trio and getting back into bed with Shizuru.

"You sure are cheerful today."

"Am I? I guess I'm just really happy you're getting better."

"Thank you, though to be honest at first glance it looks like you're hiding something," this girl knew all too well the other's behaviour.

Natsuki rubbed the back of her neck with an awkward grin.

"Ah don't worry about that."

"Then can I worry about that?" Shizuru asked in a more serious tone as she set a finger on the bullet hole in Natsuki's clothes, "Tell me what happened."

The girl flinched. She was caught. With a shameful expression she took hold of Shizuru's hand that was rested on her shoulder. Natsuki placed it back at her side and sat calmly. Hesitantly, she began to tell the story of what happened while she was out. About Reito's appearance and his words; about the conclusion she reached.

"Whether we like it or not," Shizuru said with a sigh," Sometimes our enemies are right. Although that doesn't mean they still aren't our enemy."

Natsuki closed her eyes and nodded, "I know. It's just hard to take that step... to finally accept this."

Arms wrapped around her, "No matter what you may think of yourself, I will always love you... so don't fret about it."

The blunette felt a nip at her ear.

"That doesn't mean I'm not still upset about you planning on hiding it from me!"

Natsuki jerked back and rubbed the sore spot, "So what now?"

Shizuru's face clenched up as she tried to move. Despite the other girl's urging to for her to stay still, slowly but surely her legs moved. She swung them over the edge of the bed and sat there for a moment.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm going to teach you. But for that we have to go outside."

"Teach me? You mean, how you summon that weapon of yours?"

"Yes, although," she looked down, "It seems my legs are at their limit for the day, would you mind carrying me down to the parking lot?"

----------------------------------------

On a cargo ship off the coast of the island city, the Searrs executives were reviewing the previous night's events. Alyssa sat back in her chair reading over the latest reports, Miyu was seated at her right, and Mai was stationed at the doorway flicking her ears at every sound.

"It seems Kanzaki has already made advancements in one night's time. How is this possible?"

"He had been working on this project earlier than we found out. It appears there are his spies among us as well, they knew about Mai."

The girl sighed.

"So that's why the soldiers they sent to fight us during the transfer were elite. I suppose this means we have to tighten security. From now on everything is kept to ourselves," she paused and formed a stoic expression, "... And kill them once they tell us their information."

"Hai, ojou-sama."

Alyssa stood up and walked over to the window to look across the water at the city fading into the distance.

"We are no longer in need of spies. It is clear that the First District is already quite ahead of us in terms of knowledge, it is a waste to try and beat them. The time has come to focus on military strategy to wipe them out for good."

----------------------------------------

Shizuru sat on the edge of the stairway leading out of the loft into the desolate ex-parking lot. It made for the perfect view of the whole area, while still being far enough to not be hit by anything Natsuki created.

"So, how do you do it?" asked the blunette as she sat down on the railing.

"It's hard to describe... I just... envision it there, and it shows up. You have to trust that whatever it is will be there, now go try it."

With a light push Natsuki slid off the railing and walked out into the empty space.

_Something to fight with... like... a sword! Yes, that's good enough to start with..._

The girl closed her eyes and held out her hand. Inhaling, she cleared her mind until there was only a blank void of space.

_Now... Hilt..._

A bronze hilt appeared in her mind, while a lighter more transparent version massed in her hand.

_...And a blade._

Again, she formed the metal in her mind first and attached it to the hilt, and the same thing happened in her hand. With the piece complete, its opacity increased along with density.

"Uwa!" exclaimed the girl as her body fell forward with the sudden new weight. She grinned and lifted the weapon, taking a few practice swings.

"Ara! You did it! Now just forget about it."

Natsuki nodded and simply imagined that it had vanished, sure enough it faded away.

"That was really simple though... I wonder if I can do anything else."

"Most of the time it also comes with emotion... since spirit particles influence that as well."

"She's right," called a voice from behind the corner of the building. A black haired figure stepped out from the hiding place, a large obsidian blade balanced on her shoulder, "You want to see how emotions will affect your power? I will get my revenge on you for hurting Ani-ue!"

_...Kanzaki's sister!_

----------------------------------------

Alyssa and Miyu, followed by Mai of course, walked out onto the deck of the boat. She watched as they neared the shore of the closest life-hosting peninsula. The forests were thick and green as they should be, home to many species of animals; though only one was important.

"Are the Einherjar prepared?"

"Hai."

The small girl looked out at the land expressionless again before turning to go back inside.

"Clear it," she ordered.

The robot nodded and sent the command via radio to the captain leading the troops. Smaller rowboats dropped into the water as the human army of Searrs closed in on the forest. Their orders were to find all wolves and capture them to bring back for transformation.

_We have to have a force larger than the First District... Even if they have slightly more power, we will win with numbers._

"Miyu, how many should we expect to have after this?"

"Twenty."

"Good."

Alyssa led the way into the bottom of the ship, down to a training room.

"Mai. We are going to practice until you can create something whose power level would beat Kagutsuchi into the ground."

"Hai," replied the werewolf.

----------------------------------------

Natsuki grit her teeth, "Were you sent by him?"

"No. I came on my own, but that doesn't matter. He made a mistake in letting you live. For his sake I will rectify that."

Mikoto then swiftly swung her claymore into the ground. It was a different attack than what she used against Nagi. This time the sword extended itself underground, cut through it, and rose up at a distance. However, she did not go for Natsuki first. The tip was about to hit Shizuru who could only raise her arms to block when the navy-haired girl darted across and pulled her out of harm's way.

"Just like a human to play dirty," she scoffed, "If you want to hurt me, then come after me!"

The human girl paid no heed to this, and called retracted her sword from the ground. She was fast. Fast enough to be right next to the pair the second Natsuki landed. Holding her weapon in both hands, Mikoto swung it horizontally, leaving no room for the girl to duck.

_Defence!_

Natsuki shouted in her mind as she shut her eyes tightly. The two were knocked away by the force of the hit, but not cut. They rolled along the ground for about a metre, coughing as they stood up again. The blunette looked down at her shoulder to see a shining silver plate of armour.

It was still not the time to lavishly enjoy her accomplishment; Mikoto went for another attack. This time Natsuki was surer of herself, she finally was getting the idea behind all of this. All she had to do was "think" something into existence, it was that simple. When the cutting edge reached her, she extended her arm to knock it aside, covered in a large metal gauntlet.

She parried the attack with ease as her strength was quite superior to this girl's. Mikoto was sent flying back through the air, as she refused to let go of the weapon. She slid back on the ground, dragging the blade tip along with a screech. Keeping up her momentum, she began to turn; and when it reached the 360-degree point, the girl lifted her sword as if to swipe her enemies, though still at a distance. A wind blade soared at the two hybrids, who blocked it again. Both sides were huffing from the fight so far.

"Heh... I should have known I could not compete with the strength of a hybrid... I was counting on your lack of human abilities but it seems you learn quickly," she leaned her sword on her shoulder, "Without unlimited spirit particles like you, I can't create a wind strong enough to cut through a defence you make. We will meet again though."

Before she knew it Mikoto had fled the area. Natsuki scowled; she wanted to finish her, but could not follow quickly enough, especially not when Shizuru was injured. With a sigh, the girl dismissed her armour.

"It's just like them," Natsuki said, with the hint of a growl, "They start a fight they can't finish then run... only to see us get excited."

Shizuru hugged her, "The time will come... when no one will run anymore... on either side... no one will have to escape."

----------------------------------------

Later that night, Reito finally woke up in the hospital bed in the First District command centre. He blinked and felt around his face. There were a few stitches in the skin, but the main reconstruction had taken place inside. He tried to open his mouth, but couldn't very far. Just then a doctor came in.

"Kanzaki-sama, I'm glad to see you are awake. You took quite a hit, but we were able to repair all the damage. We had to stick pins into your jaw to keep the pieces together so that they could heal. You were lucky only the bottom was broken and not the joint section, though for now you will have to keep the wires on."

The man hissed between his teeth and got up, getting dressed without hesitation.

"You still can speak Kanzaki-sama, please keep it to a minimum though."

Reito appeared to have ignored the doctor, though in truth was just staying quiet to avoid possible pain. Right now his mind was wandering, remembering what happened. For the first time in years his insecurities were surfacing as he realized what his ego had set in motion.

_I should have never let them leave!_

He punched a wall while cursing to himself, keeping his fist tense. 

_Tch... We still have an advantage..._

----------------------------------------

The ride up in the elevator was silent until Kanzaki flipped open his phone.

"Is she ready yet?"

"Yes," replied the anonymous voice on the phone.

"Good. Bring her to the east parlour and tell Suzushiro-san I request her presence there in ten minutes."

Confident his order would be carried out; Reito shut his phone and placed it in his pocket. He looked up to watch the numbers rise to the proper floor and rubbed his bruised face. The pain stung, but it did not faze the man. His latest and most powerful accomplishment was waiting for him; this was no time to let mere physical pain be a bother to him.

His phone rang and opened it with a frown.

"What?"

"Kanzaki-sama, your sister has returned unharmed."

"Returned? Where did she go?"

"She told us that you knew and we were not to know sir."

Reito closed his eyes in a frown, though it calmed into a smile.

"At least she is safe. Tell her I will stop by her room when I am finished with business to check on her."

"Yes, Kanzaki-sama."

_That girl... she cannot continue this behaviour. It will start a war we are not prepared for is she is not careful._

The lift doors opened and Reito strode along the shining floors to the large double doors. As he passed the cross of another hallway, he was met with the loud blonde whom he had summoned.

"How did you get so beaten up?" she asked with little remorse for the man's pride, turning to walk next to him towards the room.

Reito just smirked.

"Because she fights with emotion, see what I mean? Now imagine that power fighting for us."

Haruka was still unsure of what the man's newest experiment would result in. Being the chief of the organizations military division, she would have them under her strict supervision. She leaned against the wall while the man took a key from his pocket and unlocked the door.

"Alright, show me this hybrid that won't tear my head off."

Smiling, Reito led the way into the room where a lone figure had been sitting; Haruka at his side.

"That's her," he said, motioning to a girl on a chair that stood up and came forward, head bowed low.

"I look forward to serving you… Haruka-chan."

----------------------------------------

A/N: Dun dun dun!I really think she's going to be my favourite towriteas an antagonist.Anywoot… if Mai works for Searrs… and Mikoto works for the First District… O.O! Oh noes! Yeah… sorry about that MaixMikoto fans… -hides- Maybe... if it won't alter the plot to a fault, they may interact... Not promising anything though.


	4. Scent of Blood

**mrerice:** Mini-Christmas?! -happy tears- It really fulfills me to know you enjoy this so much. And don't worry, I love long reviews heehee.

**Thanks to mrerice, glowie, Shichu, elfspirit7, ALEXISSA2, lindred and all the other readers! -gives you chocolate... because I have too much left over after Easter haha-**

**Chapter 4: "Scent of Blood"**

"…-chan?" the blonde asked, eye twitching at the audacity of this creature to add such a suffix to her name.

The girl only remained smiling at her two superiors.

"Forgive me but I have some business to attend to with Mikoto. I'll leave you two to get acquainted. She will be your personal bodyguard from now on."

The brunette bowed as Reito turned, waving dismissively at Haruka's glare. She sighed and looked back at the girl whose face gave the impression she was unaware of the awkward silence.

"…You're small," she grunted, having expected a powerhouse-type like the others. This one seemed to be even shorter than her and thin-framed.

"Yes Haruka-chan! I am!" replied the somewhat bubbly girl with a smile.

The blonde only groaned as she smacked her palm onto her forehead. As much as she wanted to leave and get a "trade in" for this one, she knew better than to disobey Reito's orders. If this was what was assigned to her, she would accept it. She moved from the doorway and went to sit in one of the large chairs, followed close by the girl who was almost skipping after her.

"Would you like some tea Haruka-chan?"

"Err… Yeah, I guess… but can you stop calling me so familiarly? It's erkwerd…"

"-Awkward," she corrected quickly, "Ah, forgive me."

The woman sighed, breaking her train of thought only to take hold of her tea. She let out a relaxed breath of air and looked over at the girl who was sitting patiently.

"Do you know your abilities?"

The brunette looked up in thought, "Hmm… no."

"Can you transform for me? I want to see what your full build is."

"Transform?"

"Yes… don't tell me you don't know how?"

The girl looked away shyly.

"Argh… great… just great… whatever… at least you make some good tea," She sipped her drink again, "So, what is your name?"

"Name?"

"Yeah, what do they call you?"

"Hmm…" she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate, "I'm sorry, I don't know."

Haruka was palm-faced again, "Fine… I'll name you."

"Really?!" her eyes lit up with excitement.

"What name would suit you…? How about Yukino?"

"If it is what you wish Haruka-cha- I mean… Suzushiro-san."

"No."

"Ah?"

"…You can call me by my first name... Compensation for me not even bothering to give you a last name."

"Thank you! Haruka-chan!"

Before she knew it, the blonde woman was jumped by the girl who wrapped her arms around her in a forceful hug. She fell back further into the chair pressed between the fabric and Yukino. Haruka was frozen in shock at first, but slowly she found her hand move to the top of the girl's head, moving in a slow petting motion.

--0--

There was a light knocking at the door before Reito opened it slightly and peered inside.

"Mikoto? Are you here?"

"Mm."

The man smiled at the woman sitting on the edge of her bed and slid through the opening of the door, further into her room. He sat down on the bed next to Mikoto who stared down at the floor with a guilty expression.

"You can't sneak off like that."

"I'm sorry Ani-ue... I only wanted to avenge you once I heard you were hospitalized..."

Reito looked at her with sad eyes before wrapping her in his arms.

"Do not worry, my beloved little sister... I am not angry."

She looked up with watery eyes.

"You aren't?"

"Of course, I could never be angry with you... Only troubled that you had me worry about your well being..."

"I'm sorry..." she said looking away sheepishly.

Reito caught her chin between his fingers and turned Mikoto's face back to him.

"Do not make such an expression. I did not come to punish you; only to tell warn you not to be so reckless," he paused to pat her head, "I also have a present for you, but it isn't ready yet."

The woman's eyes lit up with glee.

"What is it?!"

"I've decided to give you the next hybrid as a guard."

"Really!? Just for me?"

The man smiled as his sister's jovial response, nodding with his own smile.

"Just for you! And I've asked for some of the levels to be changed to that she will have an affinity to wind too, so training her should be easy."

The young woman gripped around Reito's waist tighter.

"Thank you Ani-ue!"

--0--

Natsuki groaned in her half sleep as she fumbled through the blankets, reaching for the lack of warmth. She slowly opened her eyes and blinked at the empty space.

"Shizuru?"

The girl quickly shuffled off the bed and out of her room, looking around worried. The fearful expression easily faded into a smile as she saw the chestnut-haired girl standing in the living room, looking out the window at the half-expended day.

"You can walk now?"

Though she was taken aback slightly by the presence of someone else, Shizuru grinned as she faced the blunette. In a flash she appeared beside Natsuki.

"It's not nice to sneak up on people," she nipped her ear, causing the girl to flick her head on reflex, "Taking advantage of the fact that I'm so used to your scent I don't notice... Ikezu."

The younger girl blushed and brought her palm to her equally red ear and watched as the other stepped away lightly towards the kitchen.

"I'm glad you're better... For a while there I thought you'd be a stone forever."

"Of course not. It just took a while to heal the inside of my body, but I feel perfectly fine now."

Natsuki let out a sigh of relief and stood at the table in front of Shizuru's cooking.

"So... what are we going to do today?"

"I was thinking more training. We need to find out what type of elementals we are."

"There are different types for everyone?"

"Yes. Assuming it comes from the human abilities, I read in a book that each human usually has one type of element they can use, in rare cases they have two."

"How do we figure it out then?"

"Trial and error."

--0--

Reito and Mikoto walked side by side down the silver hallway; the latter holding onto her brother's arm tightly with a grin. She had a knack for personality switches. Normally she would appear cold and distant, with a hint of bloodlust. However only in the presence of this man would she turn into a small child; giddy as could be about a new pet.

"Have you met her Ani-ue?"

"Not yet I'm afraid, but I was told she's very strong."

"That's good! Yup! Very good!"

The man chuckled and patted the woman's head then slid a card through the locked door to enter the living space made for hybrids right after transformation. The metal slid upwards, revealing a red werewolf pacing around, clearly bored. When the two humans entered, her nose twitched and she turned to them.

"Took you long enough!" she groaned, walking towards them, "Which one of you am I gonna be working for?"

Reito smiled his usual smile and pointed to Mikoto.

"That would be her, and you are...?"

"Midori," replied the hybrid while looking the woman up and down, "I'm supposed to serve you? Aren't you a bit young?"

"Ah Midori-san, you forget that everyone here is younger than you."

"Oh right... Anyways I don't really care too much."

She began to revert into her human form; clothed in a dark blue shirt and gray pants and boots.

"You two should begin training, I have a feeling you will get along," said Reito before leaning down to whisper in Mikoto's ear, "When she's ready, you can go after them. But make sure you are fully prepared."

"Hai, Ani-ue."

--0--

On the Searrs' new ship base, Alyssa watched over Mai's training. She was fighting against her finest soldier, a man by the name of Tate Yuuichi. He wielded a large two-handed sword that seemed to enhance his ability to defend against the werewolf. Whenever Mai would strike him with fire the sword would absorb the element and fire it back. If she tried with physical melee attacks, the blade was dense enough to take the brunt of the hit and allow the man to dodge.

It seemed as though the only one who was unaware of how much a game this was, was him.

Mai was merely warming up, using a fight of any kind to brainstorm ideas for a new technique. Although it was more like Alyssa was doing the brainstorming, paying close attention to the hybrid's style of fighting, strengths, and weaknesses. As she overlooked the spar, Miyu came up behind her.

"How many did we get from the raid?" asked the blonde, not taking her eyes off the combat.

"Nineteen ojou-sama."

"Nineteen? You said there were twenty there."

"It appears one escaped, shall we return and search for it?"

Though it was tempting to fully complete her previous task, the Searrs leader knew it would be a waste.

"No matter, one escaping will not affect us. Set the course for our next target. I will be on deck in a moment."

"Hai. Ojou-sama."

About a minute after the android left, Alyssa snapped her fingers to get Mai's attention.

"Mai, you can stop playing now."

"...Hai."

Meanwhile, Tate stood there sword drawn waiting for the next attack. When it appeared the hybrid was doing the same, he charged forward, ready to swing his blade wildly. When he was only about a metre away, Mai inhaled quickly, exhaling a sharp breath of black flame. Then, using her hand to control it sent it at the man whose sword could not withstand it. The fire broke through his weapon and easily caught onto him, turning him to ashes in a mere second. The werewolf stared ahead and called back the flame, seemingly eating it again.

"...Forgive me. I did not intend to kill him."

"It doesn't matter. Even the finest human doesn't stand a chance against one like you. He was just another mouth to feed in the end."

"...Hai."

--0--

Down in the empty parking lot, Shizuru and Natsuki stood facing each other.

"Do we really have to do this?" asked the younger girl as she looked down hesitantly.

"You know as well as I do that a spar is the best way to train. Just look at last time; it took you to fight Kanzaki's sister to make armour."

"But... how am I supposed to fight you? I can't risk hurting you..."

"Don't worry Natsuki," the older girl reassured as she began taking her more powerful form, "Did you forget I'm just as strong as you?"

The blunette didn't even get a chance to finish her sigh before a clawed hand came swiping down on her. She managed to jump back in time to avoid it, heaving.

"Please Natsuki, take this more seriously. Next time I'll come at you for real, it's the only way to do this."

"Alright I get it," groaned the girl as she too began transforming, "We aren't fighting humans anymore. If we want to be prepared to fight a hybrid's strength, the only way to do that is fight another one."

"Precisely. This still is a spar though, and one to find our elemental types."

With that the tan-furred werewolf charged at the navy one another time. Despite the fact that she still initially resisted a fight with the one she loved, she had to do something about the second swipe coming for her. Again Shizuru had chosen to attack vertically, allowing for Natsuki to grab hold of her wrist and use the momentum against her. In a swift pull, the auburn werewolf was flipped on her back allowing for the darker one to leap away and take a relaxing breath. They continued this practice for quite some time.

_She'll heal... I just have to remember that... No matter what, we'll both heal..._

On the other side of things, Shizuru was slowly getting up and dusting herself off.

_She actually gave me a good hit... But for the element..._

She had been too busy pondering that to see that the navy-furred hybrid was taking the offensive now. Natsuki jumped up high, her two hands clasped together swinging down. Her fists smashed into the concrete below, causing a cloud of dust and debris to rise. Shizuru had barely managed to roll away from that one and skid to a halt on the ground, waiting for the view to be clear again.

When the smoke settled, they both stared in awe at what had emerged from the epicentre of Natsuki's hit. The nearby cement was coated in a thick layer of ice, a light mist floating about. She took a few steps back, using the claws on her feet for traction against the slippery surface, and admired her work.

"I got it first!" Natsuki exclaimed happily as she tried to focus now solely on creating ice.

She extended her arms to the side and closed her eyes to concentrate. Under the cover of more cool haze, two large icicles appeared in her grasp. She twirled them for a moment but was soon caught off guard again when Shizuru leapt at her, spinning rapidly in the air to form a drill of claws.

The navy-furred werewolf had no choice but to take the hit. Though it stung to have her skin cut up from both the assault as well as hitting the ground, as soon as she stood again the wounds were healed. Although what she would have normally done was rush in for a close range fight, Natsuki knew that the purpose of this was to develop their inherent long range abilities. That being said, she focused her energy into a field around her, circulating it as if to create a large sphere.

All the while, Shizuru was observing Natsuki's powers. She needed to figure herself soon, otherwise face being a clear step behind the other. Seeing blue energy flow around the other hybrid's body, she assumed it was a defence of sorts. She began darting from side to side, trying to find the weak point of this; although this already turned for the worse when the sphere broke apart in a sort of explosion. Small needles of ice rained over the vast area of the parking lot.

The sandy-furred werewolf swung an arm over her eyes for defence and took the hit. Of course healing was the same for her as it was for Natsuki. All Shizuru had to do was pull out the needles and her skin closed on its own.

_I have to think!_

She yelled to herself as she went back to zigzagging.

_What is it?! If I pour my energy into one attack what will it be!?_

There was only one way to find out. Focusing on her palm, Shizuru concentrated a mass of spirit particles into her hand and ran towards Natsuki. The latter quickly managed to put up a solid defence in time to black impact, but it couldn't hold up long against the force of the attack. A crackling ball of lightning crashed through the ice shield and grazed Natsuki's arm as she tried to move aside.

She fell on her other arm, clutching her wound and groaning as it healed, but was too awestruck by Shizuru's manifestation. She was still running, dragging her hand through the ground and tearing it to pieces.

"Oi! Slow down!" Natsuki called, but to no avail, "Damn it!"

Her eyes followed Shizuru's erratic patterns, and at the precise moment, she summoned ice to form around her legs. The older hybrid was instantly halted, and with her sphere of thunder having nothing to feed on anymore, it quickly dispersed.

"Ara..." she heaved, "I think you can let me go now, thank you."

Natsuki walked forward, slowly turning into a human again and snapped her fingers, shattering the ice. Shizuru stumbled back a bit and shook her head, also taking on her weaker form.

"Are you alright?" asked the blunette while dusting herself off, "That was easier than I thought."

"I'm fine and I suppose it was once we figured out what to do, but look," she pointed to the sun setting on the horizon, "We've been sparring for quite a while."

Natsuki looked over as well and smiled while walking away to the loft.

"Are you hungry?"

"Somewhat, why?"

The blunette turned to reveal her grin.

"I thought I could take you out on that date I owe you."

Shizuru couldn't help but blush a little at this. The fact that Natsuki remembered her comment from a few days ago, and the fact that she wanted to in the first place was enough to make her heart flutter. She walked up behind the girl and hugged her tightly.

"I'd love that."

The pair quickly went upstairs to get their things. Shizuru stood waiting by the door while Natsuki searched around her room for her wallet. After a moment of looking she found it under a pile of old clothes and stuffed it into her back pocket. She may not have been dressed the way she wanted for a first date, but it was an undeniable fact that they had to be prepared for anything first and foremost.

"Are you ready?" asked the blunette as she took the liberty of helping Shizuru into her jacket.

"Yes, very much so," she replied, tossing her hair over the back of the collar.

They stepped outside and Natsuki locked the door before stepping a few feet in front of the other girl and extended her arm; bent in the form to link with another. Shizuru smiled with a hint of childish glee and accepted the girl's opening. Together they walked off into the growing night.

The couple walked through the streets and while Shizuru was glancing in many different directions, trying to figure out where Natsuki was taking her, the girl leading walked at a set determined pace. Finally they stopped in front of a high class restaurant.

"Wait here a sec alright?"

"Ara... shouldn't I be present for the date as well?"

"Baka, we aren't going to be eating here, I just need to pick something up."

"Alright."

Natsuki went in for about fifteen minutes before returning with a basket filled with interesting smells.

"And just when I thought I found out where you were taking me," chuckled the red-eyed girl.

"I'm full of surprises," replied the other, linking their arms again and starting to walk away, "Sorry for taking so long before we left. I had to call and reserve this stuff; remind me on our way back to return this," she pointed to the basket.

"You wouldn't keep it?"

"No stealing from commoners remember? Plus I liked the look of the food, I might want to eat there again," she laughed a bit.

After a few more minutes of walking the two reached the end of the city streets and looked out over the wilderness.

"Come," Natsuki urged, taking hold of Shizuru's hand, "We're almost there."

She took off in a burst of speed, leaping across the deserted area towards a hill.

_Natsuki... you couldn't be...?_

Shizuru's thoughts were cut off by the awe that struck her when they reached their destination: A miraculous place of lush green and sparkling water; an oasis that should not still exist. Natsuki led the way up the step-like stones and across the flat land that paralleled a series of small waterfalls along the stream, letting go of the other girl's hand only for a moment to step ahead and turn to face her.

"So what to do you think?"

"Natsuki I... How did you...? How did this...?"

"Is that all you're amazed by?"

"What do you mean 'is that all?'? This place is beautiful..."

"That it is, although it's not why I chose it," the blunette looked around and smiled, "This is where we first met remember?"

It suddenly hit her.

"Of course..." her voice trailed off only by looking around the area more.

"To be honest I'm not sure how it survived... over even how the water flows... but it does, and that's all I care about for tonight," Natsuki said as she sat down at a flat section and opened up the basket of food.

Shizuru sat down next to her and looked up. The full moon was shining bright over this piece of paradise, and those crimson eyes were entranced by it. The glittering reflection of moonlight on the water danced across that porcelain face. Natsuki gazed at her love with adoration as she pulled out a bottle of red wine and two glasses. She poured the liquid into them with care and placed the bottle back into the basket. The emerald eyes caught Shizuru's attention once again and she accepted the glass that was extended to her; watching as Natsuki raised hers in the form of a toast with a smirk.

"To the odds that believe they're against us; let's wish them luck, they'll need it!"

--0--

On the other side of the island city, the Obsidian Lord sat at the head of his table, preparing to eat as well. Very few were welcome to eat at his side, but as a show of good faith he allowed for the hybrids' presence there. The only other humans who attended the regular evening meals were Haruka and Mikoto.

"Sorry it took so long!" the small brunette said as she rolled the trolley of food into the dining room.

"Suzushiro-san? You have your guard do your cooking?"

The blonde scoffed.

"So? She's good at it, just wait and see."

"Hey I don't mean to cause any trouble," said the redheaded hybrid as she rocked back and forth in the chair, "But how can you eat with your jaw wired shut?"

"I can remove the restraints for short amounts of time... if you must know," Reito scoffed.

_Really... the insolence of this one knows no bounds..._

Yukino's eyes flicked over at the man for a moment, and then back at the food she set before the blonde. After serving the executive party the girl sat at her own seat and a servant came to bring the trolley away.

The group ate in silence for the most part until Midori spoke up again.

"Hey kid, are you alright?" she asked nudging Yukino's shoulder, "You're looking around the room like a bomb's gonna go off..."

The girl stiffened in shock before shaking her head.

"I'm fine."

"I know what you need, hey Kanzaki, can we get some liquor over here?"

The black-haired woman reached her arm onto that of the boisterous hybrid's.

"We cannot drink tonight remember?"

"Right right, oh well maybe next time."

Yukino only nodded shyly, trying to avert her eyes from Reito's gaze. The man finished his meal with a light chuckle, having observed the interaction between his executives and subjects.

_How amusing it must be to watch that kind girl be paired with the woman who cannot spare an emotion for anyone but herself._

The girl who had just been described as shy and gentle snapped her head in Reito's direction. Suddenly the man was thrown out of his chair and pressed against the wall; his collar crunched and held slightly above its normal position, as if it were being gripped. The other three jumped back out of their seats and readied themselves for battle; all except Yukino.

With an all-too-calm smile she looked at Reito who appeared to be suspended in air.

"Do not say such things about Haruka-chan."

The man flinched while the other three shifted their eyes from the girl to him.

"Yukino! What's going on? Are you doing this?"

Upon hearing her master's voice, the girl seemed to fade back into her previous demeanour and Reito slid to the ground. He heaved and readjusted his clothing with a scowl before leaving.

"I'm done here."

The door slammed shut and left the rest in silence before Mikoto stood.

"It's time for us as well, come Midori."

"Got it."

After taking one last bite out of her meat, the hybrid followed the woman out of the room.

Haruka looked hesitantly at Yukino.

"What was that?" she asked with concern.

"I... I don't know... I'm sorry, I just... I kept hearing him say things!"

The blonde sighed and placed a palm on her forehead.

"Don't worry about that... Just don't do something similar again because you won't get away with it."

"I'm sorry... I probably got you in trouble didn't I?"

"I can handle him," she looked away hesitantly.

_It's you I'm worried about if you piss him off..._

Yukino smiled and blushed.

--0--

After having returned the basket to the restaurant, Natsuki and Shizuru took a leisurely walk back to their dwelling. The latter leaned her head down on the blunette's shoulder; despite their height difference she was still comfortable. They strode along slowly, enjoying the silence and footsteps until a sudden shift jolted their senses.

"Ara Natsuki it is going to rain."

The girl sighed and looked up at the sky. Sure enough a tiny droplet of water or two fell on her nose and forehead. Inhaling deep but quietly, Natsuki closed her eyes and smiled, still facing up. Just as the rain was about to start pouring heavily, the atmosphere cooled considerably; enough to freeze the water into shining snowflakes.

Shizuru stared in awe as they floated to the ground, reflecting the white of the moon and the sepia of the streetlights all at once.

"Natsuki... Are you...?"

"Yeah... the snow is a lot nicer than the rain don't you think?"

The older girl smiled and nodded.

"You really are full of surprises... who would think that the rough and tumble Natsuki would have such a liking for the delicate beauties?"

"Hey I have a soft spot for you don't I? Well... More than just that..."

They both chuckled and walked across the parking lot to their home.

--0--

Just over an hour later, a car pulled to a stop beneath the bridge near the loft. The woman inside looked at the clock in the front seat and gripped the hilt of her blade. As soon as it hit eleven thirty she exited the vehicle, followed by her guard who was already in battle mode.

"Can you tell where they are?" Mikoto asked.

Midori nodded and led the way toward the building.

On the inside of it, Natsuki and Shizuru were about to call it a night and head to sleep when the nauseating scent of a human approached them. The blunette flattened her body against the wall and peered out her window.

"Damn it... Kanzaki's sister is back... and not alone."

"Another hybrid?"

"Probably... we have no choice but to fight them."

With a nod the two girls shifted for the second time that day, taking on the full power of being a hybrid. Not letting the attackers get a step closer they jumped out of their window, landing in a crouch. Automatically, Natsuki's had her palms sent a trail of ice across the ground, attempting to reach the legs of the other two, but they managed to dodge.

Oddly enough, no words were exchanged before this turned into an all out brawl. Midori had charged at Natsuki, getting locked into a match of claws. Shizuru and Mikoto on the other hand were dealing melee attacks. The werewolf gripped her ruby pole arm tightly and swung it at the swordswoman. Upon letting the vine extend, she sent a current of electricity into it, the sparks flying about as it tried to wrap the claymore.

On command the black sword then opened two crimson eyes, instantly slicing the vine before the voltage could be transferred into Mikoto's hands. Shizuru took a leap back, taking a moment to re-materialize the end of her weapon. Scraping the tip along the ground, the woman ran forward, swinging at the hybrid who barely managed to deflect the hit with her own blade. With a smirk on the black-haired one's face, the obsidian blade opened its eyes again; this time severing the naginata in various parts. As the pieces fell to the ground, so did Shizuru, rolling a few metres away on purpose to dodge any potential attacks. Although Mikoto only continued her follow-through by dragging her weapon along the ground in a circle, stopping when she faced front again.

Meanwhile, Natsuki and Midori were growling and snapping at each other, truly a battle of beasts. These two both preferred chaotic melee combat, especially when it allowed for their wild side to show through. They had been fighting on equal footing, but when she saw Shizuru falter in her fight, Natsuki was caught off guard and sent flying metres away. Luckily before Midori's claws had sunk in, the other's armour had appeared once again and took the damage; though her attention was turned elsewhere.

"Shizuru!" called Natsuki on instinct as she darted to the parallel fight.

_Will it into existence!_

Just as Mikoto was about to swing down with the finishing blow, the midnight-furred werewolf appeared in her path. In her flow, the woman could not see the position of Natsuki's hands being as if they were holding something. She froze in shock when her sword seemed to be parried by nothing, but did not have the time to ponder it. Natsuki was now enraged, leaping towards the woman with all she had, ready to stab her invisible blade down into her when the red hybrid got in the way.

Midori slid back and snarled in pain when the sword sliced through her shoulder. The ground beneath them broke apart as the tip pinned her into it, blood trickling down Natsuki's weapon, even if it looked like it was floating down in the air.

_It smells... toxic..._

Before she could think on this further, Midori bit into Natsuki's leg and used all of her strength to toss her backwards, pulling the blade from her wound also.

The four remained silent as more blood flowed through the hybrid's auburn coat. Her lime eyes looked around shakily, as if just for a moment, her false judgement had been cleared. Cursing, she turned and grabbed Mikoto's shoulder.

"We have to go back."

"Why?"

"We're no match for them now."

"We can take them!"

"NO!"

"What?! You follow _my_ orders!"

The werewolf used the strength in her other arm to pick the girl up by her collar.

"Look here! I'm the one with the attack power! I say we can't fight them!"

Before more arguing could be exchanged, Midori had forcefully grabbed Mikoto and run off into the darkness. Natsuki tried to chase after them, but her leg had not yet fully healed and she stumbled.

"Natsuki! Don't strain yourself!"

The girls began to revert into humans again, save for Natsuki's injured limb which continued to heal.

"Shizuru it... argh... it makes me sick..."

"I know... me too... Come, let's get inside."

Lifting her over of shoulder, Shizuru carried Natsuki back into their loft and onto the bed; both heaving for breath.

"Why did she leave? And what was that smell?" groaned the blunette with her arm folded over her face.

Shizuru sat quietly on the side of the bed.

"Did you see the look in her eyes when you stabbed her? That blood of hers is cursed... even more than our own... when it leaked... so did her corruption."

--0--

The Searrs boat pulled up to the shore as close as possible. Repeating the same procedure as last time, Alyssa ordered the troops into rowboats and into the woods there.

Nao peeked her head up from her den, ears and nose twitching at footsteps and smoke in the distance; her heart aching with each tree burned. Suddenly the bright red flash of a flare lit up the sky, waking the pack. A howl of fear cried out from her mouth.

"RUN!"


	5. The End of Pretty Dreams

A/N: Ahh new chapter yay! Over 1000 words longer than normal because I'm celebreating end of school lol I just want to "warn" people that from here on to the end of the story it's going to be a lot more action-y and dramatic, and less on the romance. Though I will be trying to find ways to make some of the drama romantic. Anyways onwards with the beginning of the closing... which don't worry, will take a few chapters lol.

**lindred:** The sword itself is actually a large two-handed blade (but she's strong enough to hold it in one) that looks somewhat similar to Asuna's sword from Negima. Though yes the invisible aspect was inspired by excalibur. I wanted to add my favourite weapons/abilities into this. As will be shown with Yukino if it isn't been figured out already.

**Thanks to elfspirit7, ALEXISSA2, lindred, Silver Ice Bullet, mrerice, and all the other awesome people who read this fic!**

**Chapter 5: "The End of Pretty Dreams"**

Surprisingly, for two days after Midori and Mikoto's attack, there was not a single follow up. The loft was left untouched, and there weren't even spies around. Natsuki looked out the window, constantly surveying for anything suspicious. She leaned on the windowsill with her torso protruding from the gap in the wall. Her sighs began forming a pattern and eventually sounded like clockwork to the girl on the couch behind her.

Unfortunately for the blunette, the downpour outside scattered her heightened senses of smell and hearing. She sighed again, though with more frustration than before and turned to sit on the ledge while facing inside.

"You've been so tense since then…" commented the older girl while sipping her tea.

"Have I?"

"Yes, so come here and sit."

The girl complied, resting her back against the cushions. From this position the heavy pounding of the rain was a peaceful sound. Slowly, emerald eyes became heavy and closed unconsciously. Natsuki drifted off to sleep and fell over onto Shizuru's shoulder. With a smile, the latter put down her drink and touched her warm palm to the blunette's rosy cheek.

_You've been staring outside so long… so cold…_

In truth Natsuki had hardly slept since that night. It shouldn't have come as such a surprise that humans would attack at anytime, but over the past two years she unknowingly let herself feel safe. On some level she was thankful they were attacked, it shocked her back into reality. She had to be on constant alert for enemies if she wanted to protect Shizuru.

Ruby eyes looked down at the girl that rested her head on hers momentarily while slipping their hands together. Little did Natsuki know, she too had been awake every second the other girl was, watching over her to make sure she didn't outright collapse on the floor. And the one time she had, Shizuru had carried her to bed.

--0--

The much needed nap lasted a good four hours before Shizuru woke up. To her surprise, when her eyes fell on Natsuki the blunette was awake still sitting there with a blissful smile on her face. The older girl squeezed the hand in hers to bring the other's attention to her.

"Thanks for letting me use your shoulder," Natsuki said as she stood up, still holding onto the hand.

"Thank _you_ for letting me rest," the chestnut-haired girl chuckled, "It's easier than I thought to get sleepy watching you."

Natsuki blushed and pulled up, bringing Shizuru with her. They stood in silence for a bit before a childish grin grew on the latter's face. The former just sighed into a smile.

"You want to go outside don't you?"

The only one thing, other than Natsuki, that could make Shizuru this blindly excited were thunderstorms and torrential rains; probably one thing that kept her saner than the other in this dreary city. The younger girl was ready to give in from the start and led the way outside with Shizuru practically skipping behind her.

--0--

As the two girls were coming back from their walk and neared the loft Natsuki's eyes started darting around.

"You're getting tense again," Shizuru stated.

"Sorry… it's just… do you feel that? Something's not right."

The older girl turned to see if she noticed anything, but nothing seemed suspicious. Dismissing it as Natsuki's paranoia, she continued toward the dwelling.

However after only a few more steps a cry louder than the thunder itself echoed through the sky; a howl for help. The pair of hybrids turned to face it, eyes wide with fear before bolting at full speed toward it sound. They quickly reached the source. Near the bridge that led off the island, a red and white wolf lay motionless in the ground.

"NAO!"

Natsuki fell to her knees beside her friend, rain pouring through their hair.

"Nao! Wake up!" she felt through the fur, feeling the amount of gashes in her, not even noticing the volume of blood seeping into the water on the street. Tears welled up in the girl's eyes as she continued to pet the wolf's head. Shizuru stopped a few steps away to give air and try to make sense of the scene before her. The blunette hastily removed her jacket and covered her friend with it, trying to close the wounds.

Suddenly, the canine clenched her eyes; she was alive at the very least.

"Nao!" Natsuki's expression turned from crushed to hopeful as she lifted her friend's head off the ground.

A lime eye slowly opened and turned to glance at the one above her, "…Hime…" she muttered as a smile formed on her lips. She had made it as far as she needed to; Nao knew that if she could reach Natsuki everything would be alright.

Both girls on the other hand stared silently; it had been a long time since Natsuki was called by that title. Her confusion could wait though, for now all that mattered was making sure her friend was safe. In one swift motion the girl scooped the animal up in her arms. The thunder was raging overhead. It was but another reminder that they had to get inside as quickly as possible.

--0--

Once inside the loft Natsuki placed Nao on the bed and quickly wrapped her in sheets while Shizuru was trying to find as much replacement fabric as possible.

"Why haven't her wounds healed yet!" the blunette practically cursed as the blood was soaking through.

"Whoever did this must have drained her energy, but at least she still has enough spirit particles in her to keep replacing the blood until they close up."

Natsuki felt a bit of relief in that. Despite how it appeared, now that they were inside and resting, it was only a matter of time before Nao regained the energy to become completely revitalized.

Ears that were once pinned back in pain gently flipped forward unconsciously, earning an eager glace in her direction. The wolf's eyes opened again and she observed her surroundings, slowly becoming aware. Natsuki reached over to pet the side of her neck comfortingly.

"Who did this to you?"

"Judging from their fighting style… I'd say Searrs…" she replied with a sarcastic smirk, all were glad her personality had returned.

--0--

An hour or so later the chaos had died down Nao was resting peacefully in the bed. Natsuki hadn't left her side. There was light creaking of the door when Shizuru entered with more supplies and some food.

"Here," she said laying some meat down beside the wolf, "How long did you go for?"

Nao took a large bite and tried to steady herself, though wasn't ready for that yet.

"I guess… About a day, maybe a little longer," she chuckled, "Heh… I've been running for a day to get here, practically non-stop."

_It was the exhaustion that caused her to collapse… That means the wounds aren't as dangerous as we thought… Good._

"What happened?" Natsuki questioned with a clenched fist.

"The den was attacked," she groaned, "It all happened so fast… We managed to get the pups out but… I don't know what happened to the rest of us. Some tried to fight but were brought down. The best option was to run but for us to take others to safety some had to stay behind to hold back the humans."

"Knowing you, you chose the latter option right?"

"For the start… but we knew it was a losing battle, my absence wasn't going to change anything, so I went on a mission instead."

The blunette raised an eyebrow while Shizuru simply watched her reaction; she knew what Nao had come for from the moment she called her "Hime" out of instinctual memory.

"What do you mean went on a mission?"

"Tch…" the wolf roughly got to her feet, shaking the makeshift bandages off to reveal near perfect skin, "I came to get you!"

The girl's back stiffened as she was taking aback.

"Don't you get it?" unconsciously the animal was beginning to get angry with Natsuki's lack of response, "None of it would have happened if you were there!"

…_How can there be a place for me there anymore?_

"No one said it because they all think you're dead, but I can guarantee that when that first flayer went off our hearts all cried out for you to be there! When we heard the marching and panicked, we prayed that you would come back and save us!" her head sunk low, "And I cursed myself for going along with this foolish idea of yours."

A lone tear seeped down Natsuki's cheek. She was so conflicted. There was no way she could win; her past was just one rushed error trying to cover up another.

"Look, I know it's harsh, but it's the truth! Only one is suited to lead us, and it's always been you!"

The girl clenched her fist. Her anger with herself came out at her friend.

"Are you insane? There's not a place for me in my own world! How can I go back to a place where my own principles make myself dead? It's not possible!"

"You idiot!" the wolf roared, "Your pride is so blind! It's so simple! As leader change the rules! Change the norms! You have the power to do that! If you have enough respect in yourself to still be alive now for your own reasons, then live for us too!"

The girl was quickly at a loss for words. She couldn't retort what she knew in her heart was right.

_She's right… in every way… I throw around my words like they mean the world to me… Like my honour is everything… yet everything I've done has been for me. A real leader would have gone back confident that her pack would follow her no matter what…_

"We'll forgive you, you know?" Nao said in a reassuring tone, it seemed more hopeful than anything.

"Why would you? I've… I've done nothing… I didn't return to protect the pack, and I didn't get our justice on my own… I can't do anything."

"What you mean is you can't do anything alone," the wolf glanced over at Shizuru, "But you aren't alone now are you?"

The blunette froze and looked at the smiling love of her life. The older girl nodded to the wolf and took Natsuki's hand in hers.

"We're here to support you Natsuki… but unlike you we can't lead. We're strong in our own ways but can still only follow."

The girl's watery eyes glanced back and forth between the two.

"_We'll forgive you…" "We're here to support you…"_

Those words echoed in her mind as her eyes closed. Her head seemed to shake within itself, like her consciousness was fading; but suddenly something caught her attention. Her hand was still being held. There was still someone who no matter how much she wanted to run would always be holding onto her. The girl's heart calmed. She took a deep breath and thought.

"It's time," Shizuru's voice whispered, "Time to end this for good. Forget the past, just act now. You've already been forgiven, so do now everything you wished you would have done before."

Jade eyes opened in a blaze of confidence. Everything she had wanted was here waiting for her and she had been foolish enough to run away from it.

"No more," she said proudly, "No more will we ever run! The final fight is now!"

Nao threw her head back in a howl.

"That's the Natsuki I remember! That's the one I befriended! Now let's get a move on," she jumped off the bed.

"Whoa are you okay to move?" the blunette asked, kneeling by her friend.

"Yeah I'm good. You know it doesn't take long for us to heal. It's you two who has to prepare."

The girls looked at each other and nodded. As Natsuki said, this was the final fight, or… the largest step towards it. With the loft being attacked it was no longer a safe place, not to mention they probably wouldn't be back anytime soon anyways. It was time to leave it behind them.

"Where to?"

"The pack of course! I have to complete my mission to get you after all!"

--0--

Meanwhile, in the First District hospital the red haired hybrid sat on the edge of a table, her legs hanging off the edge as her gaze fell upon the floor. Midori had been placed under surveillance for the past two days after failing to take orders. She had been kept locked in the lab, with no visits from anyone other than doctors who were told not to converse with her.

Furthermore, the hybrid had lost her memory of the event and had no idea why she was now a captive; and not too happy about it either. At long last the door opened, and whoever it was, Midori was ready to let off her steam on. Her glance snapped to the black-haired woman.

"Mikoto! What the hell do you think you're doing keeping me prisoner? I thought we were partners!"

"So did I," she replied coldly, "But you proved yourself untrustworthy so we had to see if there was something wrong."

"What are you talking about? You're the one who shouldn't be trusted! You left me in here for days without reason! I should tear your head off!" Midori roared.

Mikoto smirked and looked dead ahead into the eyes of the hybrid, "But… you won't."

The older woman took in a breath and scowled. Despite the softness of her tone, Mikoto's words were commands. Midori didn't know why but her chest began to hurt. In one frame of mind she had no reason to trust this person who caged her, but she could not disobey.

"Tch… Whatever," she scoffed and hopped off the table, "I don't know what the hell is going on, and as pissed off as I am right now…" something deep inside wouldn't let her finish.

"You need me."

The flame-haired woman strode past the other towards their training room.

"Like hell I need you," she lied.

--0--

It had been close to an hour since Natsuki and Shizuru left their residence behind and followed Nao across the dead land. Everything was a dull grey and brown; and the earth was dry and cracked. A chilled wind blew, throwing dust around everywhere.

"How much longer do you think it'll be?" the blunette asked.

"See that mountain?" the wolf gestured towards it, "They should be there, so no more than another hour of walking."

The pair nodded and looked around as they moved forward.

_It's so empty…_

"Nao…" Natsuki started, "Where did they attack from?"

"From the water it seemed."

"That makes sense," she muttered, "When we fought Mai, they said something about heading to a port."

"They also let their main base get blown up," Shizuru added, "If the army itself came from water I'll bet the new headquarters itself is offshore."

Natsuki clenched her fist.

"Damn, that's going to be even harder to get to."

"Take it easy, you won't be able to go after them today anyways. When we get back a scout will find out where they are and you can go tomorrow… Right now they need you with them."

The blunette nodded, "Right."

Nao grinned and tossed her head back again, howling into the sky to announce their arrival as they reached the base of the mountain.

"Nao… do you really think it's okay to come like this? What if they think we're the enemy?"

"What did I tell you before? They'll follow you for you. Which means they can tell," she remembered her reaction the first time she saw Natsuki like this, "I'm just a dunce that's all."

They climbed up the mountainside with relative ease and quickly came to the flat plateau. Natsuki stopped in her tracks with Shizuru at her side; Nao took this as allowing her to enter the makeshift den first. As the wolf rounded a corner, the blunette took a deep breath and held her love's hand tightly in hers; it was the moment of truth.

"Nao!" called one wolf.

"She's come back!" yelled another as they all ran forward and gathered, "Thank goodness you're alright!"

With a grin, the red and white animal turned to the path she had just come from. With her chin high and a wind on her face Natsuki stepped forward. Choking on her tears Natsuki fell to her knees in a gracious bow to them. Shizuru did the same; although she had never been in as high a position as the other girl, she was still one to fake her death and leave the pack.

"I am truly sorry! I dared to abandon my pack in the name of honour! I do not deserve to lead you. But if you would give me one more chance to make things right, I promise I will protect you all with my life. I promise never to leave anyone behind again. I beg of you, let me be your leader anew and take back our world!"

The wolves stared unblinking at the pair for a moment; unsure of what to say or do. In their hearts they were feeling just as awkward. Their leader was bowing to them. They knew why yet, it still didn't seem right.

Silence engulfed them for what seemed like an eternity for Natsuki. She was completely at the mercy of the pack. When she heard the light scratching of claws against rock she thought they were done for; that the wolves would tear them apart.

_I love you Shizuru…_

Natsuki thought as her hand slid on top of the other girl's.

…_I'm sorry you had to be a part of this…_

Her eyes clenched tightly when she felt wetness on her face but quickly opened in astonishment when she felt it on her hands as well. The gentle licks on her skin quelled the chaos in Natsuki's heart. Her tears turned from fear to joy when she was accepted. She looked up into their eyes.

"…Why?"

"Because you're alive. You might think we'd be angry but right now… Our so-called hopeless wish has come true: You're alive and still wish to lead us."

All it took was Natsuki's return to make everything right. The wish of the wolves had been granted, and with those words Natsuki's wish had been granted, and seeing her smile so genuinely once again granted Shizuru's wish. The pair was then jumped by a bunch of eager puppies that were strong enough to push them onto their backs. The girls laughed as they jumped around in excitement.

_We're together again… We're a family again…_

--0--

When night fell on the mountain, Natsuki was sitting on the edge of a cliff, dangling her legs in the air and overlooking the pack. She couldn't get that smile off of her face, seeing everyone again, not to mention so lively. It was hard to tell that they were only half of the original size, or rather, it was easy to forget.

In an instant, Shizuru leapt up from below to meet Natsuki on the ledge. The blunette reached over and pulled her into a hug. Though stunned by the sudden act, Shizuru didn't mind at all and returned it happily.

"Thank you…"

"Hmm?"

"For everything… Sticking with me in the beginning, through the two years together, for convincing me to come back."

The older girl snuggled closer and rested her head on Natsuki's lap.

"It's because I love Natsuki," she said brightly.

The girl smiled and stroked the other's hair.

"I love you too."

Just then a set of footsteps came up behind them; the pair turned their heads to see Nao and another brown wolf.

"As touching as this day has been, there are still important issues to take care of. Tonight we have to plan."

Natsuki nodded while Shizuru sat back up.

"I'd like to introduce you to Akane," the red wolf motioned to the other as she stepped forward, "She became a part of our pack some time after you left and hers was attacked."

"I'm sorry to hear that…"

Akane lowered her head in reverence before looking back with confidence.

"It's alright. They died fighting for what they loved; I simply want to make sure their deaths weren't in vain... which is why I'm going to ask that you take me with you tomorrow."

Natsuki was a bit taken aback by this. This wolf was young and seemed quite shy on the outside, but her words were powerful. The girl could tell she had a strong heart and spirit; and knew that they felt the same way. With a grin she nodded.

"Four it is then!"

--0--

The parlour room of the First District was relatively quiet. That was until Yukino came running in panicking. The blonde executive inside nearly had a heart attack as she fell back out of her chair.

"Haruka-chan!"

The woman shook her head clear and lifted herself halfway up, propping her arms on the desk while resting on her knees. She looked up into the brunette's eyes with a confused expression.

"…Eh? What is it?"

"Look!" the girl shouted as she pointed to two ears resting atop her head, "Haruka-chan what's happening? I'm scared!"

Sighing, Haruka stood up and reached her hand over to the ears.

"Well... Look at that, you do have some wolf in you… I guess it just took a little longer to show…"

"…Wolf?"

The blonde caught her words and stiffened for a moment.

"Never mind," she pushed herself up to stand, her eyes catching sight of a furred object behind the brunette, "Ah you have a tail too Yukino…"

Her eyes widened in shock as she turned around and looked at the fluffy addition to her body.

"When did that get there?" she asked while flicking it around.

Haruka sighed again and put a palm on her forehead.

_You've probably had it all day and just didn't notice until I said anything…_

"You're probably right," Yukino said with an embarrassed face as she hopped over to one of the chairs around a table.

Haruka raised an eyebrow and followed her before she remembered.

_Oh yeah… she can read my thoughts…_

"Sorry… I can try not to listen but…"

_But what?_

"Your thoughts are very loud," she chuckled, "They're hard to avoid, but I can try to block them out."

"Actually no… It wouldn't be good for you to block them out…"

_Clearly her ability is sensing this… and whatever she did with Reito__… It would defeat the purpose if she couldn't hear thoughts around her._

"My ability?"

"Yes," the blonde looked at Yukino seriously, "Something I've been meaning to talk to you about…"

"What to do mean?"

For some reason Haruka was having a hard time bringing herself to say the truth. This whole time she knew that Yukino wasn't meant to be a servant or a cook, but a guard and a fighter. She thought at first that there was just a flaw in the transformation but after the hybrid's display at the dinner a few nights ago her strength was clear. Yet, she was so harmless at the same time, even the militant executive didn't know how to tell this girl she was created for the purpose of killing. When she saw Yukino's eager eyes, Haruka pulled her words together quickly.

"Do you know how you threw Kanzaki?"

The brunette thought for a moment.

"It was… painful… I was hurt and they just came out."

"They?"

"It felt like… arms…"

Haruka raised an eyebrow.

_Arms…? Invisible but… tangible arms?_

"Yes, there was… four I think... After it happened I tried to get them out again but it didn't work."

"Maybe you have to be under some sort of pressure?"

"Perhaps."

"Well I hope you learn how to control it in time," she snorted, trying to make up for her earlier softness, "We need to have you calm in a battle, but still use your full potential."

Yukino merely bowed slightly in response, as both accepting the plan to train and the order to eventually carry out the damage; though when her head rose again a smile tugged at her lips.

"Haruka-chan?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you… for not exchanging me…"

The blonde's face twisted at this while trying to hide her blush. However upon seeing the girl's wagging tail it became a futile task.

--0--

The sun rose over the peak of the mountain, albeit hidden by clouds. They turned from a dark blue to a light grey, only slightly brighter in colour than the dry ground. Natsuki was already awake and overlooking the expanse of territory surrounding them. No matter what direction they were headed, it was going to take them some time. She turned when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"You didn't wake me?" Shizuru asked still with tired eyes.

"Nah, it's rare that you sleep in so I thought I'd let you," she said with a smile, "We have a long day ahead of us."

With a nod the two girls turned pack towards the centre of the den where they unpacked and ate the rest of the food they had brought with them from the loft. Shortly after, Nao and Akane had woken and joined in eating their own breakfast.

"Right on cue," the red one said turning to a pair of grey wolves running up to them, "So did you find anything."

"Yes," a scout replied, "They're on a ship. They don't even seem to have a land base."

"How to you propose we get there?" the navy-haired girl asked them.

"They were headed north, judging by their speed compared to yours, the best way would be to cut them off at the ice flows. It's the fastest way to get to the Northern Peninsula by boat; they're going to be passing right by us again..."

"Sounds like a plan, how much longer do we have?"

"Not long. You should leave as quickly as possible."

The girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath. This was it. Finally they were taking real action. Natsuki opened her eyes on a beat and stood up, followed by the other three.

"Let's head off then!" she clenched her fist and grinned, leading the way off the mountain.

"Wait!" called one of the scouts, "Aren't you going to say something to the pack?"

Natsuki raised an eyebrow as more and more wolves seemed to appear before her, waiting for some words of encouragement. She had never been good with speeches like this, the girl turned to Shizuru for help but the older girl merely smiled and urged her along.

Just say what's on your mind right now... as you go into this...

"I... I will..." she stuttered briefly then cleared her throat, "I will protect all of you! I promise!" Natsuki raised her arm and materialized a large blade overhead for everyone to see, "By nightfall Searrs will be no more!"

The crowd's voices sang through the sky. The girl took it in for a moment before dispersing her weapon. With another step she was ahead of the group of four, nose to the wind.

"Let's go!" and in a flash they disappeared, racing across the plains towards the ice flows.

--0--

"There it is!" called Nao as they came closer to the shoreline.

The group halted and watched the massive fleet move by. Though in reality the ships were moving quickly, from this distance it seemed to go so slowly. Without a thought, they leapt onto the nearest floating block of ice, then the next, and so on; continuing until they were along the side of the largest boat where they assumed Alyssa would be.

"How do we get in?" Akane asked as they pulled up directly next to the metal hull.

"Here's the plan: We're gonna tear into the side and attack from the bottom up. With this one gap it should take a while to sink it so we'll have time to go find the rest of the pack that was caught."

"What about Alyssa?"

"She's going to find us on her own, there's no point in us wasting time looking for her."

The two wolves nodded and watched as the hybrids shifted into full werewolves. Shizuru and Natsuki both threw their claws into the metal and with all their strength pulled it apart. The steel screeched as it was pried open, much to the shock of the few Einherjar inside.

At the moment there was only three of them, but of course, they still thought they were all that. The trio of men stood and materialized their swords and clubs ready to beat away the intruders. With wide grins the four leapt inside the vessel and continued their attack.

One slashed a large blade at Natsuki who easily caught his wrist, breaking it in the process, and allowed Nao to have an open shot and bite into his throat. He fell to the ground with a thud and the red wolf leapt forward. Meanwhile, Shizuru was still as usual; ever confident in her own strength. The club-wielding man raised his weapon before swinging down onto the tan-hybrid's shoulder. To his shock and dismay, it broke into pieces not leaving a single trace of damage. In a single, calm blink, he was thrown across the room and through the metal door.

The final man was simultaneously being taken care of by the two wolves. Upon rushing in, Akane had gone low, biting into the Einherjar's calf muscle and tearing it from his leg. When he fell was when Nao had leapt forward from her previous attack and finished off this second man.

"Let's keep looking," instructed Natsuki, "The jails are bound to be somewhere around these lower levels."

The other three nodded and followed her lead, fighting any back up soldiers that got in their way.

--0--

"Searrs-sama!" cried a soldier as he ran up to the bridge of the boat.

"I'm already aware," the blonde girl replied while overseeing her navigators and security personnel checking their screens.

Miyu and Mai waited at Alyssa's side for commands while the leader herself calculated her plans. She turned her head to the werewolf next to her.

"I thought you eliminated them," she said coldly to Mai who seemed unresponsive, "No matter, there's no way four of them can make it through alive."

"Searrs-sama! They're headed towards the room!"

The girl's attention was immediately grabbed as she looked at her won screen at the sequential security footage. The two wolves and two hybrids were running through the hallways towards one of the former lab rooms on the ship.

"Corner them in there! Miyu, take them out! Mai, stay with me!"

Everyone surrounding her nodded and took their respective positions. For once Alyssa's nervousness was showing. Her senses were sharp now when she heard they were under attack.

"Searrs-sama! Look! There's another one coming from the opposite direction!"

"What!?"

"It's heading to the room too."

The girl's eyes widened and her fists clenched.

_Tch... They'll all stop when they get there anyways... no doubt about it._

--0--

"What makes you think they're there!" yelled Nao as she and Akane tried to hold back guards coming down the one-path hallway.

"Just trust me on it!" Natsuki called back as she began beating on the metal door.

No matter what it wouldn't budge and she doubted the effect of her sword would be any different. A hand was placed on her shoulder as Shizuru moved her back and stepped towards the door. She had another plan. With a deep breath she placed her two hands on the door before sending a powerful jolt of electricity through the wires. She smirked when it worked as she thought and the locking system was overloaded, opening the door for them.

Without hesitation the group rushed inside to find what they wanted to see, for the most part. Their comrades were alive, stuck in cages, but alive.

"You're safe!" Natsuki cried out in happiness as she ran up to one column of cages.

Just as she was about to reach to tear the lock off a shot was fired at her hand. The navy werewolf winced in pain as the bullet went through her hand and lodged in the metal. She pulled it back on reflex and stared down the next team of Einherjar coming their way. Her wound hissed with a light smoke as it healed while Natsuki snarled at them.

They were so close now; she wasn't going to let anyone stop them. With a roar the hybrid slammed her hands into the floor and coated it with ice. It spread in a trail that spanned the room as the rain of bullets were about to begin pouring over them. However before they could hit, a wall of ice rose from the ground and blocked their path.

The silhouettes moved around behind the glacial shield while Natsuki kept her palms on the floor.

"There's still another exit, we can get them out that way," she motioned her head toward the door.

Although before anything more could be done, even more soldiers came through. They weren't surprised though. This was an army's ship, and they were very rare, formidable, and determined invaders.

While Natsuki held her shield, the other three broke off into their respective fights, all right while having to make sure her hands weren't removed from the tiles.

Somehow in the fray, one of the Einherjar managed to pass the fighters and dart towards Natsuki. Her ears flicked behind to hear the incoming steps as she braced for impact, she couldn't let go of the ground. When she clenched her eyes shut, there was no more than a growl, a snap, and a thud from behind. When the navy furred hybrid turned, she expected to see one of her comrades, but instead a new very dark green wolf.

"Thanks, who are you?"

"I'll explain later," she said quickly before darting around in the legs of the soldiers with Nao and Akane. The three tore at the limbs, causing the humans to lose the ability to move before striking the final hit.

Blood was spattered around the room as the end of that wave fell to the ground. Everyone was taking deep breaths to regain their energy. Luckily the shadows on the other side of the ice wall had moved away, probably going to try finding another way in, but it was good enough to be gone for now. Natsuki removed her palms and stood up before walking over to the others, eyeing their newest ally.

"Forgive me for not showing myself sooner," she spoke formally, "I had to stay hidden if I wanted to stay on the boat long enough to free my pack. As for my name, you can call me Akira."

Nao grinned.

"Good! We have another one with us!"

"However it will not be effective enough," came a stoic female voice from above.

The makeshift pack snarled at the cyborg that emerged from the shadows. Miyu was dressed in her full battle gear; a sword on one arm, a gun on the other.

"I was both created and designed specifically to protect ojou-sama and her wishes. To put simply, I am incapable of doing otherwise. That is why I will put an end to you here and now... because it is inconceivable for me to fail. I was not designed to do so."

The silver-haired being leapt off the small balcony which lead to the outer hallway. She prepared to fire at the two bipedal wolves when she was caught in mid air by the others. Nao, Akane, and Akira had tackled her forcefully but knew she could not be held much longer.

"Go! Get Alyssa! We'll finish this damn robot!"

Shizuru and Natsuki nodded to them then at each other briefly before running down the hallway Miyu had come from. Alyssa was bound to be somewhere that way. There was only one thing clouding the younger's mind.

_What do we do if Mai is also there...?_

--0--

A/N: For anyone who's wondering why this chapter is called "The End of Pretty Dreams" that sounds rather sad when Natsuki finally took her stand, it's because I'm a firm believer that there's good and bad to everything. So, the end of dreams stemmed her action. In another light, I don't wanna spoil anything but the tension is rising. And I think that's it for the character introductions. Akira was the last on my list of people I could incorporate into this (aside from psychotic Yukariko running a rebel fraction but... that became too comedic to think about lol). I estimate max 3 more chapters of this fic, it was meant to be kinda short, but I don't intend for it to be lacking anything either XP.


	6. Beginning of the End, Birth of a God

A/N: Unfortunately this isn't beta'd... since the guy who does it is on my bad list right now, I did proof read it though so typos and such should be minimal. Anyways enjoy the second to last chapter!

PS: In case it matters, due to my horrible title skills I've been using songs' titles that I find fitting or have been listening to while making the chapter. And because I'm paranoid, I don't own any of said songs.

**Thanks to koalarap, glowie, elfspirit7, nolens volens and everyone else who read!**

**Chapter 6: "Beginning of the End, Birth of a God"**

The heavy footsteps of the two hybrids echoed through the empty hall. They were leaping forward down the single tracked path towards the only place left unsearched on the ship.

"Where is everyone?" Natsuki asked, still keeping her eyes ahead.

"Probably planning evacuation, which is why we have to hurry."

The navy-furred werewolf nodded, but something, a spark of sorts, hindered her determination. She kept running; her mind and body knew better than to let her heart conflict at the moment. On the other hand, Shizuru looked over at Natsuki with concern in her eyes. She knew very well what was going on in her head, and hoped for the best when the time came. It would only be a few seconds longer before that moment of truth arrived. Whether Natsuki sensed this worry, or simply wanted to get this over with, she increased her pace; tiles sliced by their claws on each step.

Suddenly a glimpse of light appeared at the center of their vision, and due to their speed it grew almost instantly to surround the hybrids as they reached the end of the hallway. Finally, they met with the girl and her pet, though it pained Natsuki to think in such a way.

Alyssa and Mai stood in the middle of the open, empty, bridge of the ship. Glass windows surrounded them, followed by the outer deck; and not a single sound was made.

Natsuki glared at the girl who kept that confident expression, then with a scoff turned to the stoic werewolf. She stared into her eyes, searching for the slightest glimpse of hope... but they were so empty. She clenched her fists when the search seemed to be futile, she didn't want to believe it.

"Natsuki..." the voice distracted her but not enough to stop looking, a tear formed in her eyes.

_Come on! Where are you! You can't have disappeared completely!_

"It won't work," came the girl's voice, "Mai has been well trained, unlike you two. She will not falter like before."

"Don't you order speak for her!" Natsuki roared as she ran forward, dragging her claws into the floor to avoid soaring off the ground from her speed. She kept it up until the very end when letting go allowed her to fly up, aiding in her swipe.

The following sequence of events happened near instantly. While Alyssa remained still, Mai had already countered Natsuki in mid air; heaving one forceful punch into her side and hurling her into the ground with such force the tiles broke. In that same split second, Shizuru, who had failed to make it in time to stop Mai's counter, still managed to land her hit on the hybrid. With an angry snarl her claws dug into Mai's abdomen. On the next step in her dash she threw the rusty hybrid clear through the air, then through the glass and onto the deck.

"Shizuru!" yelled Natsuki as she stood up, clutching her side, "What are you doing?"

The tan werewolf turned to face the voice, looking through the mist of settling dust with dark eyes.

"I will not tolerate anyone hurting you," Shizuru turned back to Mai who got up seemingly unharmed, "No matter who it is or why... And I won't apologize for it either."

Natsuki flinched. She knew what this meant, and that hit just now proved it. With one more breath she looked into those dead eyes again.

"You... don't even know what's happening do you?" Mai faced front as she took her place obediently next to Alyssa, "...You can't remember who you are... your home... your brother..." Natsuki grit her teeth, "I never got a chance to meet you Mai, but I remember when we fought... You cried for your brother and said that it hurt. You knew what was happening but couldn't stop yourself."

With shut eyes she extended her arm to the side and called forth her great sword.

"Mai, I will treat you with respect. I will not let you harm your own kind... I..." her eyes opened, flooding with more tears, "I will end your pain!"

Gripping her weapon tightly in both hands, Natsuki ran forward, followed by Shizuru who moved in at an adjacent angle. All time seemed to slow in the former's mind. Her memory moved from her first feelings as a hybrid up to her fight with Mai, then to the fight against Midori. She remembered that horrible scent of toxic blood, and how as it leaked from the hybrid's system her mind seemed to clear.

_Mai... will die knowing the truth..._

And at less than a metre away, the navy-furred hybrid began her swing.

--0--

"Gah!" cried Nao as light jolts of electricity zapped her jaw.

The wolf faltered back and shook her head. Miyu was a cyborg after all, coming in direct contact with the inside of her would cause minor damage. Akira and Akane were also kicked back by her when Miyu got on her feet again.

Not wasting any time, the robot fired more rounds at the animals. Akira was swift enough to dodge, but Akane was hit in the leg in mid jump. Not only that, but the force of the bullets threw her off balance while in the air, causing her to spin into one of the cages before falling to the ground.

"Akane!" Nao yelled, turning her head briefly in the direction of her fallen friend. Unfortunately that was one second too many, for Miyu had already reached her side. In one quick slash, the sword arm cut into the wolf's skin, as well as knocked her away.

Luckily it was only in her shoulder, but it didn't take long for her to realize one of the weapon's effects. Heaving her breaths, Nao looked down at her wound. If it had been any other weapon she would have healed by now, not to mention be less exhausted from one small hit.

"Tch..." she scoffed before looking back at Miyu, "Your creator was smart, he knew you weren't immortal like us so he had you equipped with that sword. Fights between those who can't die last forever, and without that sword, to stop us from healing, your fake body is more likely to break down than our organic ones."

The android looked at the wolf blankly.

"Correct. This blade absorbs spirit particles, limiting both your strength and regenerative abilities. It allows for me to make an effective strike that won't be repaired quickly."

"As good as that sounds, he forgot one thing," Nao got into an attacking stance, "Willpower can override injury!"

With that said she leapt up despite her gash, diving for Miyu's neck while Akira came in at the opposite direction snapping at her legs. Nao's attack was parried by the robot lifting her arms in front of her for defence, then thrusting them upward to toss the wolf into the air; slashing at her underside in the process. However Akira managed to deal vital damage. Her bite landed right over a set of wires crucial for Miyu's leg movement. She couldn't rip them out as if they were real tendons but that worked to her advantage since when she continued pulling in forced the robot to trip and fall backwards.

When Miyu had fallen, Akira let go and jumped up, turning in the air and sliding to a halt next to Nao who was slowly standing up.

"Are you alright?" she asked the red wolf.

"Yeah," Nao groaned, "It's a bit to get used to but I'll be fine."

There was no time to rest. Miyu lifted herself up with one leg, dragging the other like deadweight, and took aim at the wolves again.

--0--

That day Midori had spent most of her time training with Mikoto, most of which was against her will. Now she sat in her room looking around at its emptiness.

_There's no way I lived here before... None of my things are here..._

A sharp pain coursed through her head. The woman gasped and held the side of it, shaking back and forth until it subsided.

_Who the hell are these people? Why don't I remember anything?_

She fell back on her bed with her arm folded over her eyes.

_None of this makes sense..._

Midori thought about it for the next ten or so minutes. All she knew was she was being kept in the dark about something, and she intended to find out. That was, until the pain resurfaced. Wincing, she rolled over on the mattress and buried her head in the sheets. Every time she tried to think it would hurt; more precisely, when she tried to think on her own it would hurt. Nevertheless, even in this pain she wanted to know the truth, but the more her mind ventured into the unknown, the worse it got. The point eventually came when the search through her memory ended, and she collapsed from the ache.

The sleep she fell into was one unlike any other. For the first time in all she could remember, she dreamt. She dreamt of rolling hills and soft grass, she was running through it, somehow able to feel every dewdrop on her paws. It didn't matter where she was, just so long as this feeling lasted. Midori looked around her dream world and to her surprise she wasn't alone. Her eyes widened in shock when she found herself at the top of a hill overlooking a den of wolves.

It was only for a split second before everything went black. The world faded away too quickly for Midori to attempt holding onto it, and once it disappeared, she opened her eyes to find herself still in her empty room. Moreover, the dream she just had was gone from her memory. She sat up quickly, mentally trying to hold onto any fragment she could find, but it was impossible at this point.

The door to her room opened without warning and Mikoto stepped in.

"Are you alright? You were throwing yourself around the room."

The red-headed woman looked at the black haired one, with a rather panicked expression.

_How did she know that?_

Her eyes locked onto a series of security cameras placed all around the room.

"Oh yeah! These!" she roared before unleashing a blast of wind that tore up everything in the room.

Mikoto herself was thrown back into the wall but got to her feet easy enough.

"What's the matter with you!?" she yelled before being pinned to the wall by the hybrid's immense strength.

"You tell me! I know this isn't where I came from so tell me the truth! What's going on here and why can't I remember anything from before you people showed up?" Mikoto kept her silence, this could still be salvaged if she appeared less threatening, "I can't even remember my damn dreams! And I know you guys are the ones behind it!"

_She's been dreaming!_

Mikoto inhaled a quick gasp rather silently. Now things were out of hand. The most drastic sign of a failing hybrid is if they dreamt; it meant their subconscious and instincts were returning. The human woman resorted to emergency measures, reaching into a hidden pocket on her back and pulling out a tranquilizer. It was easy at such close range to jab the instrument into Midori's arm and watch her slump to the floor before running out.

Mikoto ran to the end of the hall and flipped open a secret transmission panel. She hastily dialled the emergency code that brought her directly to the security branch of the organization.

"I need armed men and a hybrid prison ready now!" she yelled into the microphone before running back to the room.

As expected of her brother's organization, the team she ordered was already at the site, hauling Midori away to a cell. Mikoto followed them and promptly called Reito on her own phone.

"She's dreaming Ani-ue! Something went wrong, she isn't taking my orders anymore and she even attacked me!"

On the other end of the line Reito smashed his fist into the wall. His plan was falling apart.

"Try keeping her in prison but if she makes any attempt to escape, kill her."

"Hai, Ani-ue."

The woman flipped her phone closed as they neared the hybrid's cell. Mikoto knew that tranquilizer would only last so long, and the twitch of Midori's wrist didn't ease her tension on the slightest.

"Hurry!" she ordered, taking her own initiative in the process by grabbing Midori's ankle to toss her into the room. It backfired. All it took was that one light touch to wake up the flame-haired woman, who had retained all of her previous anger. Using all her core strength, Midori pulled in her limbs to throw the soldiers off balance before kicking out and sending them flying into walls.

The hybrid scrambled to her feet, transforming in the process and tried to run. She didn't need her memory at this point. All common sense and knowledge of the present events told her she had to get out of here. She knew she had been lied to and now those same people had their weapons drawn at her.

With a vicious roar Midori bolted down the hall, through the soldiers, tearing them up as she went. Mikoto had only just materialized her claymore when her shoulder was gripped by claws and she was hurled in the opposite direction. The auburn werewolf rushed her way out of the building; running through the halls and jumping over any obstacles before crashing through a window. Luckily it was only the third floor up, and for her that was hardly any trouble to land with.

She didn't have any time to rest; Midori could hear the sirens of First District private police cars, as well as the firing of weapons. With all she had she made a mad dash across the bridge and into the dead lands. Even though she saw nothing but more emptiness, she didn't care; it was the only place she could run too. It had taken a good hour of running before Midori realized she wasn't being followed anymore. The soldiers had given up; assuming she'd die on her own in the wilderness, but this was just what she needed. Turning to face ahead and catch her breath, the woman started to wander for any sign of life.

--0--

The battle was still raging on the Searrs ship. Natsuki swung her blade again, once more barely missing. It landed with a thud in the floor, sticking for a moment, making the blue werewolf the perfect target. But this was still a two on one. When Mai moved in for her attack, Shizuru was one step nearer. Furthermore her palm was lit up with lightning which she thrust forward into the red hybrid's shoulder. Her attacked pierced through Mai's body with the momentum causing her entire arm to go through. She was brought to the ground easily but that's where the benefit ended.

Despite having a limb lodged in her torso, Mai kept up her strength and bit into Shizuru's arm. The elder hybrid howled in pain but pulled back on reflex, tearing her arm out of the hole in the other's body and having some of her own flesh remain in her teeth. Blood covered both of them and spread across the room when Shizuru leapt back to gain distance.

"Mai! Finish her!" ordered Alyssa as the hybrid stood up and raised her one movable arm.

In her palm, Mai formed a ball of fire before throwing it forward. However her projectile was deflected by one of ice that came at its side. Both seemed to explode on contact, raining a grey mist over the three for a few seconds. When it cleared Mai was standing over Shizuru, still with an emotionless expression.

"Do it Mai!"

As ordered, the werewolf opened her mouth, forming a small black flame between her teeth. The second Natsuki's eyes caught sight of this even the slightest remnant of a wish to save Mai had left her. She darted over with all her speed, appearing instantly at Shizuru's side and the black flame was fired at the two. It was the end now.

--0--

On the lower levels of the ship the wolves were still fighting Miyu. Each had now become victim to her draining sword and one time or another; but it didn't even scratch the surface of their resolve. Out of nowhere the metal ceiling started to drip, it was melting. The edges started to be lined with the dark fire and made its way down into the room.

"Great! Now we're on even more of a time limit!" Nao cursed as she dodged another series of bullets.

Miyu looked up.

"That means Ojou-sama finished things. The other two are dead. I have to attend to her now," the robot turned on a dime and attempted to leave. Things didn't go as she planned.

The three wolves were not going to let their efforts go to waste or let Miyu get away. With all their power left, they charged at her open back. Being artificial, all she had were senses, not intuition. When a new task appeared in her "mind," the fight was no longer existed.

Akira and Akane leapt for her shoulders, tackling her down while Nao chewed into the back of her neck. The armour there was thick, specifically designed to prevent the breaking of important wires, but that wouldn't stop her.

"There's no way," she growled while wrestling her way in, "That they can be dead!"

And with a crunch there was a mechanical fading noise and the light from Miyu's eyes disappeared.

--0--

As soon as she arrived, Natsuki had pulled Shizuru close to her, moving her out of the way, while having her sword held at such an angle that it also stabbed through Mai's abdomen.

The indestructible flame ripped through the floor just behind them and was now spread across the boat, but it was heading in the opposite direction for the time being. Natsuki felt the drops of blood fall in her as she remained still to catch her breath for a moment before looking up to see Mai staring ahead in a dizzy haze. The navy hybrid stood up, helping Shizuru with her, and dispersed her sword; the gap allowed for the toxic blood to flow out of Mai's body and over the floor.

Alyssa was frozen in place. Her "perfect" creation had fallen in battle against the two she had always regarded as the most failed of experiments. Natsuki didn't care about her now though; instead she knelt by Mai's side, watching the violet of her eyes turn from dark to light. Slowly her body became smaller, shifting further into her truest form. She returned to a wolf in her final moments of life and moved her eyes to look at Natsuki.

"It really is a shame... that we never met..." Mai spoke softly before closing her eyes and letting the last bit of air out of her lungs.

Natsuki lowered her head in a sort of hopeless reverence. It was over now, nothing could be done no matter what at this point, but she was still left saddened.

"You..." whispered Alyssa while staring at the scene before her.

Shizuru remained standing in place while Natsuki only looked at the blonde girl with her tear-filled eyes. With a deep breath she stood up and blinked them away, glaring seriously at the child in her sight. She waited a moment then turned to walk away.

"Let's go Shizuru."

"You aren't going to finish her?"

"She has no followers or any place to run... And that's _if_ she makes it off the boat alive," Natsuki gave one last cold stare to the girl on her knees slowly becoming surrounded by the fires of her own creation.

The pair escaped onto the deck and looked out over the ice flows. They sighed in relief when they saw the large mass of wolves on the shoreline waiting for them. Everyone had gotten out safely. Suddenly there was a small explosion from the bridge of the ship and more dark flames were spreading, now onto the last available place. Without any more hesitation Natsuki and Shizuru leapt off the side and landed on an iceberg.

They reverted back into a human shape and stepped onto the next one floating by. Jumping ahead both made it to the shore easily but fell back onto the ground from sheer exhaustion.

"Yeah you guys need a rest," Nao said as she hobbled forward, now taking time to attend to her wounds, "But don't worry, everyone got out in time."

Natsuki stared up at the sky.

"...All but one..." the red wolf raised an eyebrow at her friend, who looked back at her sadly, "One of us didn't make it..."

--0--

After the incident with Midori escaping Haruka had spent her time pacing around worrying. Security was her department. Her job was on the line. At least that's what she kept telling herself to worry about. She looked up at the tailed girl before her who was bouncing around fixing tea.

"You need to relax Haruka-chan. There's nothing you could have done. Midori was very strong so it's no surprise she was able to escape despite your best efforts."

"I know I know..." the blonde sighed and sat back in her chair, "Kanzaki is just such a pain to deal with."

"Don't worry about him."

"I'm not scared of him!" she blurted out, clenching her fists, "I just... don't want to think about what happened..."

Yukino sighed sadly and set the two cups down on the table before sitting on the arm of the chair. She made a habit of sitting familiarly with the executive; although Haruka's mind was in too much turmoil to even notice.

"Haruka-chan? What's wrong? Your thoughts are so scrambled I can't make out a single word before it's cut off."

The blonde only tried to lean back and think about it objectively. In all honesty even she didn't know why she was so worried. Yes, Yukino's ability was fearsome and if she turned on the organization it would be certain death for anyone in her way; but there was a deeper meaning to why Haruka didn't want this to happen.

_If she learns about her past... she'll... she'll leave just like Midori did..._

Not even her inner voice could finish before she began shaking.

"Haruka-chan? You don't look well; I'll go get a doctor-"

"Don't go!" she pleaded while holding onto the girl's arm, "Don't leave me."

Yukino stopped as she was ordered, but was still confused. Even if she could read the woman's mind, thoughts were still only words; she couldn't be sure of the meaning behind them. She couldn't help but ask, it was her job as a servant.

"But if you're ill-"

_If she finds out what she is... Don't disappear from me..._

"What are you saying?"

_I... I think I love you..._

The brunette froze. She had no idea what to interpret this as. Did it demand her reaction? Was it even meant for her to be heard? She couldn't tell, so she stayed still, only holding on a little tighter.

Haruka on the other hand started to fear again when she saw Yukino's lack of reaction. Had she heard some part of her thoughts that told her the truth? But after looking up into her eyes she could see that wasn't the case, the girl was simply confused.

"Yukino... You will follow any orders from me, correct?"

The brunette nodded as she felt a hand sift through her hair and rest behind her ears.

"If it were an order then... could you show instinct?" A heat rose to her cheeks when Yukino nodded again nervously, "Then please," she tilted her head back slightly and closed her eyes, "For me..."

_Instinct...?_ The girl throught. _What I want... in this very moment... of my own emotions..._

The girl moved closer. She waited a moment to be sure this was what she wanted but soon captured the blonde woman's lips while the door creaked open. The man on the other side sneered at two, his patience ended when Haruka started to pull their bodies closer together. Not bothering to give any warning Reito walked into the room.

"Now more than ever I need your focus on this organization Suzushiro-san."

Choking back the breaths they were holding, the pair quickly broke apart and Yukino scurried across the room.

"I have business to attend to also; I'll leave you two alone to discuss today's matters."

"Good." Reito replied with a quick nod while Haruka was still glaring at the man for his timing.

"What was that all about?"

"That's what I should be asking. Today of all days you trust them? And I certainly hadn't intended for you to become that close."

"What do you care? It's my business," she scoffed while getting out of her chair and walking towards her desk, "You want the security info? Here it is."

Reito opened the file he was tossed and checked through the papers briefly.

"You know it isn't real right?" he said nonchalantly while skimming over the profiles.

Haruka stood still and looked away.

"...I know... It's because of the serum right?"

"It's the only thing keeping her from ripping you apart."

The woman shut her eyes in attempt to keep her heart from breaking. She knew it all along. Yukino's feelings towards her weren't hateful because of the serum's effects. Any feeling of "returned" love would only be the result of an overdose.

The man shook his head in shame at the woman's naivety.

"She can read minds correct? She probably heard you wanting it and interpreted it as an order. If you wanted her to enjoy it, she would because it was an order. If your wish was for it to come from her wants, she would make it appear that way. You know as well as I do, that if she knew the truth, and got her memory back, like Midori did, her true instincts would kick in and she would kill you."

By the end of his speech, Reito had finished his business there. The file seemed to be fine but he didn't care. He could already foresee what would happen if more hybrids were made and went missing. That path was not the correct one to achieve his goal. Indeed it was the end for him. The man tossed the papers back onto Haruka's desk and waved at her from behind as he walked away.

"What? Is that all you're leaving me with?"

Reito stopped in the doorway but didn't even bother to turn around, "Of course not. I'm leaving you with Midori on the run, and Shizuru and Natsuki out for revenge. Don't worry though; I'm sure your pet will provide enough relief from the workload."

The woman's jaw dropped. Before she could even begin yelling at him the door slammed shut and Reito was on his way down the hall.

His steps were fast as he entered the elevator. The doors closed and he pulled out his unique ID card, sliding it through to unlock the way to a hidden floor. It wasn't long before the doors opened again into a single room.

_It's a shame it has to come to this..._

He thought while pressing the keys on the control panel which opened a secret tile on the floor, where he picked up a vile and syringe. Quickly snatching them up, he got back on the elevator and went to the nearest empty room on the main floor.

_If the hybrids had worked it would have been so much better..._

With a tightened expression, he began to inject himself with the mystery drug. When the deed was done he turned and threw the items on the floor behind him. He then reached into his mouth and unhooked the wires from his jaw, putting them with the rest of the garbage.

_At least if this place were found... they'll know it is where I began to take my final steps..._

Reito sighed and looked at his hands reflectively before leaving the room, with the door open, and walking down the hall into more darkness.

--0--

Night fell over the mountain where the pack was resting. Everyone who was saved from the boat made it back safely and was enjoying their much needed rest. Natsuki sat on the edge again, watching over them all; she couldn't sleep. She knew that she couldn't go back in time and change what happened to Mai or to them for that matter, but it was something that would haunt her for years to come. The girl sighed once more and looked at the rather large group they now made.

For the time being Akira's pack agreed to Natsuki's offer to stay with them, so the mountain side was covered in wolves, something that brought a smile to her face.

"It's nice isn't it?" came a soft familiar voice from behind.

"It's kind of hard to believe," she replied as Shizuru sat beside her, "All this time we were able to take down Searrs and all it took was actually going to do it..."

"I don't think that's the case. We had to grow a lot stronger to be able to last that long... And we were lucky that they only had one boatload of soldiers left."

"Mm," she nodded, "Ne Shizuru... Is the end near?"

The older girl pulled her into an embrace.

"Yes, closer than it's ever been. We will rest for a while, but very soon we will end it."

The girl breathed a sigh of relief and let herself fall deeper into the other's arms. It was only now that she let all of the day's strain catch up to her, indeed it was very tiring. Not long after that did Natsuki fall completely asleep and was left in Shizuru's total care.

Ruby eyes gazed down at her love's sleeping face. She too was relieved to know this would soon be over; not only for her own sake, but Natsuki's too. The girl had spent too long bent on revenge, after this she could live her life... together they could live both of their lives.

While cradling the girl to sleep, something far off in the distance caught Shizuru's eye. A quiet gasp escaped her mouth when the figure came closer into view.

_Don't tell me they've found us here...? She seems to be alone though..._

The situation was simple enough; there really weren't any soldiers around the mountain, only this one woman wandering aimlessly. With that in mind, Shizuru placed Natsuki down gently and made her way down the side of the rocks.

Being dazed and weakened from her traveling, Midori failed to notice the being on the cliffs above her before Shizuru came leaping down in front of her. The redheaded woman took a step back to avoid a possible attack, but the girl didn't make a threatening move, only eyed her suspiciously.

"Wait! Let me explain! I don't work for the humans anymore!" Midori pleaded as she raised her arms defensively.

"Why not?" the girl asked unblinking.

"Because... they were lying to me... I don't know about what but I can't trust them! Every time I thought something they did was wrong I'd get this pain in my head or they'd lock me up! You have to believe me!"

"And why would I do that when this could very well be a trap? Considering you've attacked us on our own ground before."

Midori sighed and looked at the ground, she knew the girl was right, and there really was no reason for her story to be believed.

"I guess you're right... I just wanted to find you and the other girl because... you two are like me. I thought you could help me find the truth," the woman turned around and started to walk away when she was halted by a hand on her arm.

"Don't give up so fast. I do believe you. There aren't any soldiers nearby, and you've clearly been searching for a long time. We won't turn you away."

Midori turned back and smiled in relief when she saw the girl's expression. It was the first sign of warmth she had seen, and from someone she least expected, considering the last time they met.

By the time Shizuru had led Midori back up to where the pack was resting; Natsuki had awoken again, meeting them at the corner before where the pack slept.

"I'm gonna skip ahead a whole bunch of things and just assume she's sane since you're bringing her alright?"

Shizuru chuckled and nodded, letting Midori take a step forward.

"I don't trust those humans anymore; I want to be with you guys. What are we?"

Natsuki sighed and motioned for them to sit down. Through the night she explained everything that had happened over the past years. She told Midori about the effects of different serums she'd seen, what their plans were, everything she could. Though in explaining a vital question came to her, she really had no idea why it hadn't occurred to her before.

"Why would Kanzaki do this?"

"I dunno... that guy's got something messed up in his head. He acts like he owns everyone. From what I've seen of him it could be something as simple as world domination, or some complex, twisted plan that doesn't even benefit him. But since he's psychotic I wouldn't put it past him to do all this for nothing."

The three nodded and looked over at the glow on the horizon. Even if the sun itself couldn't be seen, the clouds would change shade depending on the time of day.

"I owe you both a lot," Midori said as she stood up, "Whenever it is that you go to finish things, I'll make sure you get you in."

Natsuki grinned.

"In exchange you can rest here with us. It might be a few days, but we'll leave as soon as we're ready," she looked across the empty land at the small specs on city buildings in the distance.

_It will be over soon..._

--0--

A/N: Sorry if the ending is a little rushed both in general and this chapter, I guess I just got a little too excited to write the final lol. I'm very much looking forward to writing the mass of fight scenes.


	7. A World Worth Dying For

A/N: Well, here it is, the final chapter. I don't know if anyone was expecting this ending but if you were -thumbs up- Enjoy!

**Thanks to all the wonderful reviewers throughout the entire story, you guys really kept me going. This isn't my most popular fic but seeing that at least a few people enjoyed it made me happy enough to continue to the end!**

**Chapter 7: A World Worth Dying For**

The dry ground crumbled beneath Natsuki's foot as she brought herself to a halt at the end of the bridge. Three hybrids and three wolves looked at the sight before them. The water's mist mixed with the wind and blew across their cheeks while they waited for the navy-haired girl to take the next step forward. Across the bridge stood the tower-like building they had sought. Everything they had lived for was this day.

With a deep breath Natsuki strode forward slowly, followed closely by the others. For most of the journey she had remained silent, taking each step as if it were a step back into her past. She marched onwards, arms hanging stiffly at her sides. Shizuru was next in line, carefully watching Natsuki's expression.

_You're ready..._ She thought to herself with a smile as they neared the other side of the bridge.

Again Natsuki stopped and looked the building up and down before speaking to the redheaded woman furthest back.

"You can take the lead from here. Show us the way to Kanzaki."

"With pleasure," Midori responded as she stepped forward, "Don't go doing anything irrational. There's too many soldiers in there for us to fight. Follow my lead to the executives and cut them down."

The rest nodded and moved closer slowly at first, then picked up their pace to a full run. Their immediate destination was the roof of the garage area. After leaping onto that they were now three stories above the ground and level with a panel of windows. One elbow smash from Natsuki shattered it across the floor.

"You'd think the glass here would be bullet proof..." she said suspiciously as Midori passed her and stepped inside.

"It is," the woman replied with a smirk while looking both ways down the hall, "Here they come."

The group stood cautiously when a team of soldiers rushed towards them. They were no more than your average First District fighter: light armour with a short sword and shield. The three humans continued to charge in a flat line formation; they clearly were not trained for this. In a flash the three hybrids appeared behind them standing as calmly as they were before and looked over the fallen men on the floor. In that instant each of them had their necks cut open; the first of much blood had been spilled.

Without a word, the six ran down the hall where the soldiers had come from. Together they got into an elevator and Midori punched in what she remembered of a code she'd seen Mikoto enter when heading up. Everything was quiet for a brief while before a thud was heard above them.

_More soldiers?_

Worse. The elevator lights flickered only a split second before the box began falling. Screaming at the top of their lungs, the three hybrids quickly transformed and tore through the metal sides and then into the wall beyond to slow them to a stop.

"What the hell!?" Natsuki exclaimed using all her strength to hold their weight.

"This is the work of one person!" replied Shizuru.

"Yeah! And I know who!" with that Midori blasted a slicing wind into the elevator doors, revealing the way to the floor above them if they could fit through the small gap, "Go! I'll handle this!"

"But!"

"Just go! Find another elevator or something! Get to the fiftieth floor that's all that matters!"

The wolves had climbed out and were now waiting for the others.

"Hurry!" called Nao from the other side.

Natsuki grit her teeth and motioned for Shizuru to get out first which she did. The weight increased on the arms of the two werewolves.

"Can you hold this on your own?"

"Not for long but I don't intend to."

Just then an obsidian claymore stabbed through the top of the elevator. As quickly as possible Natsuki retracted her arms and dashed through the opening. Her tail barely made it before the elevator fell further down. She stared in shock but it quickly turned to a frown, her body reverting back into human form to conserve energy.

"Let's go, Midori can handle her ex-owner."

--0--

Meanwhile in the falling elevator Midori struggled to dodge the sword. It didn't take long for her to use gravity to her advantage and jump straight up, breaking through the metal and gripping the wall. As she held on she watched Mikoto fall further down, but knew the woman was too wily to escape this. Like she expected, Mikoto jabbed her blade in the wall and held onto the hilt to keep herself from falling. With a strong push she flipped herself around to crouch on the weapon for a second before leaping up with cat-like agility.

Midori knew she couldn't escape upwards, as that would lead the woman straight to Natsuki and the others. There wasn't much time left, Mikoto was jumping from wall to wall in the enclosed space, shortening the gap between them quickly. In the last of her spare time the auburn werewolf jumped down onto the landing by the doors of the nearest floor. She opened them just in time to roll out of the way of Mikoto's incoming attack; while the black haired woman made it out in time to avoid the explosion from below when the elevator crashed, sending a column of rising flame as the backdrop behind her heaving body as she glared at the hybrid before her.

"You should have known I'd come back for you..." Midori snarled, "You took everything from me! You and your brother!"

"Of course I knew, that's why I wanted to settle things personally. I let the others get away."

"Even if it meant your brother's death?"

"It won't. They will be stopped."

"_If _they're stopped," Midori scoffed as she rose to her feet, "It certainly won't be by you!" she roared, sending a wave of wind at the woman.

--0--

_Now we're five..._Natsuki thought, scowling as she led the way up to the forty-eighth floor. She kicked open the door at the top of the stairs.

"Damn this place!" she cursed aloud for the fact that from the twenty-fifth floor upwards it was like a maze to get to the next staircase. As expected, security was tighter the higher they went. The group stood at the edge of the doorway trying to decide which way to go this time.

While standing in silence, Natsuki's sharp ears picked up a disturbing sound. She turned her head in the direction of a set of large iron doors. It sounded wild and vicious. The girl was about to go towards it when the other grabbed her arm.

"Wait," Shizuru cautioned, "We can get them after, but they're more likely our enemy than ally so letting then out would be suicide."

Natsuki solemnly looked at the floor but understood. Unfortunately, despite having just been warned not to open the doors, they seemed to rise on their own; or rather as a command from someone higher. Before it was even fully opened there were claws and teeth snapping through the growing gap in an attempt to escape.

"Get out of here!" Nao yelled, seeing that dead look in the eyes of several ferocious hybrids breaking out, "Move it you idiot!"

"This is no time to play hero Natsuki!" Shizuru yelled, already heading in the opposite direction, "Just have faith in them."

The blunette stared ahead at the three wolves, preparing themselves for the near twenty hybrid soldiers coming for them.

"We're wolves, we're not afraid to die!" Akira said.

Nao remained still for another second.

"Don't worry..." she turned her head around, "They won't be able to follow you."

She took the moment Natsuki stood still to process the situation to stand up against the wall and use her paw to pull down a security release, causing a wall to come crashing down between them. The girl had no time to jump inside; a shocked expression exploded across her features.

"They... don't stand a chance..." she choked out still wide-eyed at the blockade. She could hear the growling and smashing faintly on the other side.

"Natsuki let's go, don't let their sacrifice be in vain. They're giving us a chance to get to Kanzaki we have to take it."

The girl blinked away her tears and turned running back the way they came. The hallway had split a ways back; one way led to the staircase leading downstairs, the other was unknown. The two girls ran ahead in silence, concentrated on their task, getting emotional now could get them killed. They were splitting off faster than Natsuki feared, but she had to have faith in all of them.

Soon enough they found it, the stairway up. They climbed higher in the building and rammed through the door at the top. To their surprise this floor had no walls; it was one large arena-like room with a balcony around the edge and a doorway beyond.

The blunette's eyes narrowed at the figure standing in their way at the other end of the room. The blonde woman stood confidently, though alone, with her arms folded across her chest.

_It all started with her... Everything... I was hunting her..._Natsuki's fist began to shake as she locked eyes with Haruka. She remembered that night two years ago, everything was so vivid. The steam from the broken car engine, the rain, the pain in her side when she was shot... the pain in her heart when Shizuru became a hostage.

"I'LL KILL YOU!" she roared as she ran at the woman, materializing her sword and armour plates.

Haruka's smug expression remained intact while she stood still, watching Natsuki charge.

_Why isn't she moving?! _The girl screamed in her mind, but couldn't bring herself to stop. Just as her blade was about to make contact, the ground below her broke apart. A cloud of debris filled the area for a moment before Natsuki came flying out of it faster than she was moving in.

"Natsuki!" Shizuru jumped up to catch the girl in mid air, "What happened?"

The blunette's eyes fluttered open before she slowly sat up and wiped the blood from her mouth. The girls heaved their breaths while looking into the clearing dust.

"Who's that?"

"I've never seen her before."

The brown and grey floated apart to reveal a small girl with wolf ears and tail. Haruka merely smirked at them while Yukino glared with a never before seen expression. It was almost sinister. It was the same as that night during dinner when Reito had insulted Haruka. Her generally calm and shy personality snapped, showing how serious she would be when the woman was in danger.

Even Natsuki, who had seen many cold looks in her life, was surprised by this. She got to her feet and straightened her back as her wounds healed. The more pressing matter was what just happened. Natsuki knew she hadn't been directly hit. She had no cuts from claws not to mention the girl was not fully transformed. It was more like a forceful blow to the stomach; but then how did she appear? And why did it cause such an explosion?

Shizuru was about to charge out of rage for hurting Natsuki when the younger girl held her back.

"Wait a minute," she took a step forward, enduring the frigid stare. She opened her arms passively, "Why are you fighting for her?"

The brunette smirked and looked back at Haruka for a moment before returning her gaze to the other girl.

" 'If it's for my dearest one, I will do anything.' ...Do you think like that?"

Natsuki stopped in her tracks. Those same words she had heard so often from the one she loved the same words she herself wished to use. They were two sides of the same coin. They had the same motives, and felt the same emotions, but were opposed in the end. The girl's moment of thought was cut short. Yukino didn't even have to read Natsuki's mind to figure it out, it was written all over her face.

"Yes, my thoughts exactly," was her quiet reply to the blunette's expression.

Before she knew it, the girl before her began to levitate; using one her extra "arms" to lift herself while extending another in the direction of the sandy-haired girl. There was no way for either of them to tell what would happen next. These arms were invisible after all. In an instant Natsuki was watching Shizuru being hurled to the side, and in the subsequent instant, she ran at Yukino sword drawn.

_Feint attack to the right, leap above, and attack from behind._The brunette noted to herself as Natsuki's actions played out. It was just as she heard inside the girl's mind. Having predicted the movements, Yukino raised her third and final arm to smash the blunette into the wall behind her with such force the armour cracked to pieces.

Natsuki was winded from the strike and dropped her sword; it clanged for a second on the ground before dispersing. Despite being held tightly the girl managed to open her eyes and see Yukino turning in the air to face her with a wicked grin.

"You probably can figure out this much," Haruka started, "But my Yukino is a unique hybrid. In turn for being unable to transform into a physical anomaly like you, her power manifests in what we've named "vectors": Invisible, extendable, supernaturally strong arms. In addition to that, she is telepathic; which is why anything you try to plan to counter her will also be useless."

Yukino called back her vectors for the time being, letting Natsuki fall to the ground with a thud. She walked over to the blonde who pet her ears. The atmosphere changed again. With the other two hybrids on the ground, they were no longer threatening. The brunette smiled and giggled at the affectionate gesture, leaving both Shizuru and Natsuki to gape mentally in disturbance at how quickly the girl's personality could alter... and how she could appreciate the woman's touch.

"Natsuki! Leave now!"

The blunette turned to Shizuru who was slowly transforming.

"Are you nuts!? The disadvantage is already too great!"

"Exactly! So much so that you being here will not make a difference," the werewolf rose and moved into the gap between Yukino and Natsuki.

"Well... if you want to fight Yukino alone I don't care. The only reason we're here is because I knew we were also a target, am I wrong?"

The two hybrids kept up their serious expressions.

"I don't give a damn about Kanzaki, whether you kill him or not makes no difference. We're fighting for our own survival, since you won't let us go. Considering when this is done with I plan on reviving his goals for myself."

Natsuki's gaze moved to Shizuru's back, it had taken until now to realize.

_She's... serious about this..._

"No! I'm not leaving you behind! We fight together!" she pleaded, her eyes dripping with tears in response to the elder one's stoic position, "Don't do this!"

"Natsuki... my parents were killed before yours, and before I met you. Before that I was like you now: angry and vengeful. I thought I could rid this world of Kanzaki... but then you appeared. I knew it after having met you, that it wasn't my place to lead us into salvation."

The girl's pupils began to shake and her breaths shortened.

"You've waited for the moment to kill Kanzaki since before you even knew his name... He's escaping now surely, it would be wrong of me to keep the honour of killing him from you."

"But!"

"The same way it would be wrong of you to keep from me the honour of protecting you."

She was silent. It made sense in her head, but her heart couldn't let go. Somewhere deep down she knew it too though, the best way to make this a success was for them to split up. Neither Haruka nor Reito could be allowed to escape.

"Natsuki... If you fight here you will die!" she turned, her serious -almost angry- expression fading into a calm smile, "I love you Natsuki, so please... take your place as the knight meant to save the world."

The girl couldn't believe it. Of everyone that had fought, Shizuru was never the one to start it. Every time she was the victim for protecting Natsuki.

_But... to her... that is her purpose..._

Natsuki stood up and took one last shivering breath. Her eyes clenched shut as she turned on a dime down the dark hallway. She couldn't bring herself to say goodbye, all she could do was run. There was a time Natsuki would have fought to the end alongside her comrades, even if all odds were against them. But she had thrown away her pride in exchange for reason; that is what kept her legs moving at this very moment.

_I'll come back for you Shizuru! I promise! I will kill Kanzaki and come back to save you!_

Meanwhile the tan hybrid watched as the love of her life faded away into the abyss. A sense of fulfillment pierced her heart, knowing that the girl would face her own destiny; the same way she planned on facing hers. Shizuru looked back at Haruka and Yukino, the latter had already returned dark upon hearing the threatening thoughts.

"Well then," the hybrid formed her crimson pole arm and began to crackle with electricity, "I too have gotten my wish: to protect Natsuki with my life."

With that she bolted towards the brunette. As reckless as it seemed, it had a reason. As always there was a method to Shizuru's madness, one which involved high risk, but if executed properly would ensure her victory.

--0--

Metal against metal clanged as Mikoto stared deep into Midori's eyes. Her claymore was blocked by a set of two falchions gripped tightly in the werewolf's hands. With a roar and a push, Midori threw Mikoto back. Sparks flew as the black haired woman landed, screeching her blade against the tiles.

"I bet you thought being my teacher meant you knew everything about me," the hybrid smirked while fiddling with her hold on the blades, "You haven't seen anything yet!"

Midori then threw her two weapons at the woman, all while maintaining her confident composure. As they flew cleanly through the air, a chain materialized on the edge of each falchion's hilt; furthermore the chains wrapped tightly around her arms and hands, allowing her to wield them like whips. In a series of chaotic movements Midori began to spin and pivot, bringing her weapons with her. Mikoto could barely defend against the unpredictable directions at which the falchions were now coming at her.

The woman continued to swing her large sword as fast as she could, but it was not enough to avoid a double slash from the side. Midori had drawn first blood in this fight, the gashes in Mikoto's arm giving her a distinct advantage. She grinned while reeling her blades in, grabbing onto the hilts.

"I always wondered how you managed to wield a weapon of that size. After a while of fighting with you I started to get it, you use your control of wind to lift the blade as you need right?"

The woman furrowed her brows in frustration.

"From there I realized that no matter how you look at it, wind can only blow in one direction at a time. So how is it that my attack landed and you couldn't defend?"

Again Midori let loose her falchions, gripping the chain at the necessary distance. She swung them across each other with Mikoto in the centre. The woman was victim to yet another slice, but not the last in this combination. Midori's arms were now over each other, which wasn't a suitable position for a fight, so in one swift cleave she opened them, then brought her wrists back together. She spun wildly in the air, each rotation pushing Mikoto further back until Midori's blades were charged enough to be slammed into the floor, causing a shockwave to not only damage the woman but send her so far back she now hung by her arms out of the broken window.

The flame-furred werewolf stepped over the shards of glass and crouched down to be closer to the woman.

"The question is how much have _you _realized in this fight?"

Mikoto was silent except for groaning as she tried to hold on.

"In this place, you've already used up every source of spirit particles. The only one left... is me."

The woman's eyes widened in shock.

"You couldn't use wind throughout our duel, because I wouldn't let you. All spirit particles came from my body and were under my control."

She dismissed her weapons and leaned down even further, as if to whisper in her former master's ear.

"So in the end, you couldn't beat me because of the fundamental difference between us. I am a wolf, and you are a human!"

Mikoto's eyes clenched shut as Midori's fangs sunk into her shoulder and threw her far out of reach of any building. The hybrid didn't wait to hear the thud on the ground nearly thirty stories below, she merely picked up the claymore and tossed it out after the woman.

"That, a piece of metal, is all you will ever own..."

The flame-furred hybrid rushed up the stairs stopping when she saw a metal wall bent out of shape. Midori eyed it suspisciously before hearing the yelps and growls on the other side. She tried tearing her way in, but that proved useless when no matter how she tried it would only dent, never break. The werewolf cursed and looked around, there had to be another way. Then it hit her: the floor. Midori smirked and raised her foot before smashing it through the tiles. Following with a punch to it, she fell through to the level below where she kicked off, whipped her chained falchions into the ceiling and used then to lift herself up, feet-first, into it.

On Nao's end, she and the others braced themselves when they felt the ground shake, and leapt back when it burst open to reveal the red hybrid incoming from below. The three wolves ducked when Midori used the momentum from her entrance to spin, slashing her blades into their enemies. She jumped back to gain distance and recoiled the chains around her arms before looking over her shoulder.

"Sorry it took me a while to catch up."

"Kanzaki's sister?" Akira questioned.

"Dead. Unless she survived being thrown from that high, which is unlikely considering her body is still only human."

"Good. Now let's get through the rest of these guys!" Nao cheered as she rushed forward. All of them were wounded, but they wouldn't stop, not until things were safe enough for them to leave.

Natsuki had her purpose, they had theirs. Together the wolves and Midori charged at the controlled hybrids, taking down all in their path.

--0--

The ceiling cracked as Shizuru was thrown upwards into it. The breath was forced out of her lungs and she fell back down alongside wall fragments. Again she missed her target and was caught off guard. Blood seeped through her clenched teeth as she forced herself to stand.

_I need to get her at all angles... but..._

"It's impossible."

The werewolf furrowed her brows at the comment. She looked down at her palm; it was covered in blood.

_That's it!_

Yukino raised an eyebrow and prepared herself, making sure she understood the tactic Shizuru was going for. With a smirk the golden-brown hybrid charged again. The other's eyes widened.

_She found my weakness already!_

Yukino didn't have much of a choice in this form of counter. Being vulnerable in the future was better than being vulnerable at this very moment. At least if she struck Shizuru again she would remain slightly ahead by dealing damage.

As Shizuru expected, she was hit by seemingly nothing, but she was prepared for it. Upon contact she reached out in front of her, smearing the blood on her hand over the vector. Though still rolling away from the hit, she grinned at her progress; watching the mark she made float in the air.

"Yukino, what's wrong?"

"She's smart."

"Eh?"

"Her plan may work although," the girl retracted her "arm" into her black, causing the blood marking to be absorbed into her clothing before extending it clean again, "It will take more than tagging my vectors to complete it."

With that a trail of tiles on the floor were broken up as it made its way closer to Shizuru who leapt back high in the air to dodge the attack from below. It was time to go all out. As Yukino knew, the auburn hybrid kicked off the wall to gain speed, but what she hadn't predicted was missing when she shot out her second vector. A blast erupted from the wall where Shizuru had been a split second ago, and then another, and another each time she moved until finally she came close.

In a flash-like movement, Shizuru appeared directly in front of Yukino and swung her arm forward to hit the girl directly in the abdomen. With a yelp the brunette flew through the air and crashed into one of the craters in the wall while Shizuru remained still in her follow-through position breathing deeply.

"Yukino!" cried Haruka as she ran to the girl's side.

"It's... alright..." she groaned while getting to her feet again. As with all hybrids Yukino too had the ability to heal rather quickly, so getting back into battle was not the problem.

"You've realized it now too have you not? There comes a point when knowing where I will move next isn't enough. If you cannot defend, then you will be hit; it's as simple as that. If you know where I will attack, then I know where you will defend and I can use pure ability to change my trajectory."

Haruka gasped when Yukino continued to step forward into the centre of the room.

_Unfortunately, moving at such a speed depletes my energy quicker than I planned..._

"Do not worry Haruka-chan. She can only do that once more before losing all of her energy, defending will be easy enough this time," the girl grinned as she moved her vectors wrap around her completely.

_Even if she is fast enough to hit me, she is not strong enough to break through these arms._

Silence reigned over the room while the two hybrids stared into each other. With her frail body Yukino could not stand to take another hit; and having fought this long, Shizuru lacked the strength to attempt a second assault.

A crackling noise began to emit from Shizuru's body, growing louder and louder until sparks of electricity began to show. Yukino watched as the golden light grew around her opponent, soon coating her body completely. The auburn werewolf let out a snarl with her grin and disappeared.

Yukino was breathing deeply with her eyes shut tightly. Shizuru was moving so quickly it was hurting her head to listen to where she would go next; the mental sentence was barely finished before it changed. As long as she stood firmly in one position and took the hit she would win by default.

"_I'm not stupid," a voice said in her mind, "You haven't attacked me, so I know your arms are defending you, but that still leaves one opening for me."_

The girl's eyes shot open in fear.

"Haruka-chan!" Yukino cried out as she instinctively extended her vectors towards the blonde woman to protect her from an incoming attack.

For an instant Yukino thought she made it in time, as Haruka was not hit. That was until she felt her insides tear apart and skin burn. It was as if Shizuru had run straight through her, transferring her powerful lightning current into the smaller girl.

The blonde watched as Shizuru appeared behind Yukino, both falling to their knees. The electricity still gave off small bursts from the latter's body as she collapsed onto the floor. The golden hybrid merely stared blankly forward, having used up everything she had in that last attack. She knew attacking the woman would open the hybrid's defence, who was her target all along; but that of course required an extra boost to run in more directions. Her breaths started slowing.

"Yukino!" Haruka ran up to the fallen girl and lifted her up in her arms, "No! Don't go! You can live I know it!"

"...They get their memories back the moment before the die you know..." Shizuru warned from behind.

Haruka's eyes widened.

_No... she'll die hating me... she'll..._

"Haruka...chan..." Yukino muttered as her eyes half opened.

The woman looked at her with tears in her eyes, gripping tightly to the hybrid's body.

"I'm... I'm so sorry!" she yelled out.

A hand touched her cheek.

"I remember... Haruka-chan..." the woman froze, "I wasn't always with you... but... I'm glad that I was..."

Haruka couldn't believe what she was hearing. What about Reito's words before? That it was only because of the serum having been overdosed on her that she could possibly have these feelings. That was only speculation though, what she did know was true was that when hybrids begin to die, they regain their true selves. The girl in her arms started to fade. Her fingers grew closer together to form her original paws while her body structure shifted into that of a wolf. Haruka stared down at her beloved, not matter what shape she was in, she still loved her.

"I... love you..." Yukino whispered between her teeth before gently smiling and closing her eyes.

"It... wasn't the serum..." Haruka stuttered, her body shaking with both sadness and rage. She stood up quickly glaring at Shizuru's back, "She loved me and you killed her!" she roared, rushing forward while materializing her spiked club with the remnants to Yukino's essence.

The hybrid turned with a tired expression but snapped into realization when she was hit with the weapon. The metal pierced through her chest and she was face to face with the woman. They were so close to each other. Though exhausted, Shizuru reached out and dug her claws into Haruka's shoulders. Then with a painful groan pulled the woman towards her, impaling her with the spikes of her own weapon

The blonde's club began to dissipate from between them, creating a gap in both their bodies for blood to flow out. Shizuru let go of the body and fell onto her hands. She looked around at the spinning room and dizzily crawled over to the nearest wall. She winced and breathed deeply while flipping herself over to lean her back against the pile of debris left from the fight. The werewolf looked down at her wounds, but didn't even have the strength to lift her arms. Shizuru glanced at her hands as her fingers slowly pressed themselves together to form paws. She looked over at the two corpses and closed her eyes.

_I don't feel like moving anymore either..._

With a gentle smile her body's weight took over, smearing blood across the wall as Shizuru fell onto her side.

--0--

Natsuki's footsteps echoed through the empty hall, something told her this was the right way. Suddenly she felt a pang of sorrow in her heart. She wanted so badly to turn and go back, but chose to follow Shizuru's orders. She kept running, gritting her teeth as her gaze fell to the side as if to try looking behind her. It took all of the girl's willpower to lift her head high again and face forward. Just as she had sensed, the hallway came to an abrupt stop, though the room she entered was dimly lit.

Natsuki stopped and turned in every direction, looking intensely for the man.

"Hello Natsuki-chan," came the deep voice from across the room.

The girl spun around and froze as the figure stepped further into the light, a quiet clacking sound accompanying his steps. Her mouth fell agape while looking into those golden eyes. Her heart raced, but she still couldn't move. There was no doubt that this was Reito but...

"How... How did you become a wolf?!"

Indeed the being standing in front of her was coated in shining obsidian fur. He walked closer, swaying his tail proudly, as if to mock the hybrid. More tears began to well up in Natsuki's eyes. Reito had become what she wished to be, what she had lost hope in ever returning to, he had done it.

"...Why?"

"Now that's a silly question. You should know what being a wolf means."

Her fists clenched, indeed she did know what he meant.

"As I've said before, hybrids were merely experiments in preparation for this. Being able to reverse the transformation was easier than testing it on humans directly, and as you can see, it worked."

"So... in the end it _was_ all for you," she growled, "All so you could try making yourself a god..."

"'Try'? Look at me Natsuki-chan, I am a wolf now. I have just as much a right as you to restart the cycle. Clearly this world needs it."

"That is exactly why I won't let you do that. Even if your body would give you the right, you still have the mind of a human and would bring this world to ruin again! You killed so many! Wrecked so many lives with your selfishness! If it weren't for you overusing the life of this world it wouldn't be destroyed!"

"You have the first half, but not the second. Someone will end the world soon, there is not enough life left. I simply want it to be me so that I will reign supreme in the next world; call it "atoning for my mistakes" if you wish. I will be the one to restore life to this world by ending its suffering."

"Like hell you want to atone! You knew what you were doing when you began using spirit particles!"

"Ah true, you caught me, but," he grinned through his teeth, "I had to ruin this world first before I could rule the next, correct?"

Natsuki gulped down her fears. It all seemed so unreal; to think that all along Reito had a goal of this proportion. More so it scared her to think of the future. This would no longer be a fight for revenge; but to protect the world. There was a reason why humans could never rule, they would only bring destruction. Natsuki knew Reito was wrong about one thing though: this world would not end so soon, not if she had anything to say about it. It could still be saved.

The girl took in a deep breath and stared into the wolf's eyes. Her seriousness caught his attention.

"It looks like you didn't listen to my warning from last time we fought..."

"Hmm?"

"Know your place!" Natsuki cried as she extended both of her arms to the side, "You filthy creature!" and she drew up two copies of her greatsword along with full body armour, ready for battle.

"There's no way the likes of you will destroy my world... let alone rule it in the next cycle!" she roared while charging forward, swinging both of her blades in rapid succession, only to have them hit the floor.

Natsuki turned around sharply to face the wolf who had moved behind her effortlessly at such speed. She cursed while watching Reito look back at her. To her surprise she actually had managed to land a hit; though it was small and only on his arm. The girl wasted no time in continuing her onslaught, darting around and slashing at him again, only this time she continued with each step.

Unfortunately, she had been attacking emptiness and only realized when Reito jumped on her back. If it hadn't been for her frantic movements she would have been bit, but instead Natsuki tripped and rolled with it. She planted her forearms firmly on the ground and lifted herself into a hand stand position before throwing her full body on the floor with the wolf beneath her. With Reito winded for a moment it gave Natsuki the chance to get up and jump back; taking a neutral stance.

Her balance was centered in her core. Her left arm was extended in front of her, with her sword alligned horizontally and aimed at Reito while her right lifted the second sword into the air pointing at the ceiling. The girl took deep breaths and continued to stare down the silent wolf, but this too had it's purpose.

A piercing chilled mist began to circulate through the room, emitting from Natsuki's body. Soon the entire room was coated in a dew-like substance, causing the swords to glimmer in the reflection when she bent her elbows in a ready position.

Taking this as an offer to make the first move, Reito charged, but to his surprise Natsuki made no attempt to move. Even though it wasn't her primary style, getting close to him at the moment was not a good idea, so as planned she remained at a distance. Suddenly, the wolf had to dash quickly to the side when the ground below him erupted a spike of ice. Natsuki grinned as the floor was now a thin slippery sheet of the substance; his claws were not enough to hold him in place.

Just as he was about to slide into a wall, that too exploded with a glacial form. Two wolf heads stemmed from the side, trailing long necks behind them to stay anchored while they snapped at Reito. The black wolf snarled at the blue ones coming for him, leaping as best he could to bite into one's neck.

_It's over..._

The girl spoke softly in her mind. With Reito attached to her ice figures, she commanded them to rise at full speed. Bringing the fake wolf with them, the two of ice broke through the ceiling, intertwining with each other in their ascent. With all her strength, Natsuki leapt up after her creations, using the falling blocks of concrete to jump higher, while slashing apart all those in her way. She kept herself focused above her, watching Reito still holding onto one of the ice wolves.

The girl's eyes widened as he vanished, disappearing for only a split second before reappearing in front of her face. Natsuki barely had enough time to lift up her swords in defense, and when she did, she was shocked again. Reito had dove at her ready to bite and got a mouthful of metal instead, even so, he smirked while biting down and shattered the blades.

Natsuki gasped as she fell back under his weight onto a pile of debris. When she opened her eyes she saw Reito on top of her under his human illusionary figure. While it looked like he was holding onto her wrist with his hand, Natsuki could feel the truth behind it; his fangs were slowly digging in deeper. She blinked to avoid the blood dripping down onto her cheek as she held him back. The girl grit her teeth before giving one final push to end the struggle. Using all her strength she flipped Reito onto his side and got up to quickly create more distance between them. The force of the hit broke his illusion for a second but when he rolled himself up into a crouch he had already placed it on his form again.

_He broke both swords in one bite... how can a fake be so strong?_

"Funny isn't it? Destiny would always have this battle be wolf versus human... But to think we would end up on opposite sides," he chuckled, "You, a human, trying to kill me, a wolf! And of course, the wolf is winning this battle as fate has always wanted," his illusion vanished.

"So there was another reason for the hybrids! You wanted to turn us all into humans thinking you could win no matter what in a fight with us!"

Natsuki roared back at him, baring her growing teeth while letting her tail grow from the base of her spine. She opened both of her fists, cracking her fingers in the process of transformation. In some way she was glad that Reito broke both of her swords so easily. There was no way she would forgive herself if she had killed him with a human ability, much less the one that started this whole ordeal. With a smirk the werewolf shattered her armour, letting it fall to the floor with a clatter before fading into thin air.

"You still think you've really become a wolf? Prove it to me!" she cried while leaning down onto all fours.

With a smirk the two ran towards each other. Just as they were nearly side by side, they leapt forward snarling; each biting into the other's leg for a second before ripping what they could and landing back on the ground. They moved like true relfections, each running a few metres in their original direction before turning clockwise and beginning to circle one another. Ignoring the gashes in their legs, Natsuki and Reito started to shrink the circle. Again as they drew closer they launched their bodies off the ground, snapping their jaws into the other's side.

Unlike the previous clash, this time they both hung on tightly, falling to the ground with a thud and landing in a wrestling match. Both gripped the broken tiles with their claws, struggling to stay standing; and though Natsuki was the larger of the two, Reito had dug deep enough to break one of her ribs with his bite, causing the navy hybrid to howl out in pain and fumble control of herself. She fell onto her back with Reito above her once again, having removed his fangs from her wound in an attempt to snap at her from a more favourable angle.

Despite her injured torso, Natsuki strained her body away from the incoming attack. She rolled back into her queadrupedal state, remaining quite close to Reito, enough to land the fatal hit she had wanted. A quick extention of her neck allowed the werewolf to latch her teeth onto the fake wolf's neck. His eyes widened and darted to the figure at his side, who immediately took advantage of his weakened state to pin him down with her paw-like hands.

They remained still like this for a moment as visions of those she was fighting for flooded Natsuki's mind. Her body shook with rage as she couldn't help but dip her toes in darkness; holding him in a cruel position like this made her feel better than she would have liked to imagine. Reito on the other hand could feel the vibrations from the growl in her throat pulsate through his own neck, instigating a fear unlike any other he had ever experienced. He tried to breathe deeply, but his large lungs were being pressed on with such force he could barely manage a gasp.

_Torture him..., _A voice spoke to Natsuki, _This moment will only happen once, pour everything you've ever wanted into his death, no one would blame you. He deserves humiliation!_

For a second the hybrid began to slowly increase the pressure, and with it the pain. That was until a thought even more important than this entered her consciousness.

_Shizuru is waiting for me!_

Reito stared, shocked, at Natsuki who removed her fangs from his neck. She looked over him with a serious, but not dead, expression. In his fading vision she looked more like a wolf now than ever. Her silhouette of pointed, dominant ears and two powerful forearms compensated for her knees bent so far they almost touched the ground. This was too important for Natsuki to do in any other position.

"No matter what physical form you take, the truth is in your soul... You are still one of divinity's failed creautes."

The obsidian wolf made a weak attempt at escaping the hold, but failed. Natsuki's jaw clamped around his spinal column and in one, simple flexion of muscles, snapped it. A sigh of relief followed as the hybrid took a step back and stood up over the corpse. As expected, the body morphed back into that of a black-haired human. She glared at it for no more than a second before scoffing and abandoning the room. The moment she waited nearly her entire life for had been placed before her, and she didn't care. As soon as Kanzaki was out of the picture, she had completed what Shizuru had asked of her, she was free to return to her side, which was all Natsuki wanted right now.

She skid to a halt as she approached the room from earlier. Natsuki glanced quickly through the debris, the fight had ended but where was the victor? The girl choked when she saw the smear of blood along the wall over the fallen tan wolf.

"Shizuru!" she cried, rushing over at full speed to hold the animal tightly in her arms. Natsuki's eyes flooded with tears as she continued to howl her name.

"Why!? Why did I listen to you!? Why was my revenge more important than you!?" she roared, pounding her fist into the wall so hard it shattered, "I promised to never let you get hurt! I..." she began to choke, "I really do love you more than myself... so why... why did this happen?"

Natsuki continued to cry out all of her pain, not holding back in the slightest. Something changed then. It started slowly, but the building around the pair began to glow a pale green. It started at the top and crawled lower and lower before refracting into smaller pieces and floating away.

"Natsuki!" called a familliar voice from the opposite doorway, also starting to fade. Nao and the others tried to break the girl out of her hysteria but to no avail.

The ominous power flowed through the building, then to the city, then even further into the world. Soon nothing was left untouched, everything shone brightly: buildings, trees, humans, and the wolves alike.

"Natsuki! What are you doing?" Midori yelled out, stumbling on the crumbling building's shaky foundation.

The girl in question looked back at them sadly as the jade energy from the building began to swirl around her and become absorbed into her body.

"I'm restarting..." she said with a meek smile.

Nao's eyes widened.

"You mean...?!"

Natsuki nodded, as now their bodies started to shimmer as well.

"I'm sorry... I wanted to save _this_ world... but... I have no reason to without..."

"We understand," Nao said softly, "Natsuki, we're immortal remember? We've done this before..."

The others nodded, slowly dispersing into the air and flying away with the breeze.

"See you soon," she said with a grin the second before fading completely.

Now, the only beings left in this world were Shizuru and Natsuki, the final two to leave. The blunette softly pet the wolf's side, watching her falling tears turn to green dust on contact with the body in her arms.

"I'll take better care next time... I won't run from my destiny... you'll help me with that alright?" she pulled her close, "Your life is mixed with the rest of the world now so I don't know if you're close enough to hear me but... I'll find you again soon, and we can live the life we were supposed to... I let this world become uneven... the distribution of life became concentrated in the wrong areas while leaving others empty... Soon everything will be level again... I love you..."

In a gentle gust of wind, the two were swept away into the ocean of spirit particles. It flowed though the world, growing as it consumed more dissipating entities. It wasn't long before it covered the planet, taking it's time in flatening evenly before beginning its new creation.

First the water an land masses formed, life had not yet surfaced. All was silent when small snowflakes floated down from the sky, slowly piling together into distinct forms. They remained still and white briefly as the snow stopped falling and the clouds above broke apart to reveal a midnight starlit sky.

The six wolves lay on their sides, empty shells for the time being, though one by one their life was once more infused into their bodies. First was Natsuki, the blue wolf touched by the night and most blessed by the moon to have created such a splendid new world. Her fur became dyed in the colour of the night sky, and her newly opened eyes reflected the soft green of the nearby water. She was dazed but got to her feet.

Natsuki smiled, relaxed that she and the others made it safely. This was her wish after all, of course they would all return. In her broken state Natsuki was able to accomidate an incredibly high amount of spirit particles into her body, which is what made her capable of shaping the world as she willed; the so-called "god-like power" one receives after rebirthing the planet.

_I remember now... everything... It was always the six of us... The four elements of the physical world with the two sides of time..._

She thought to herself as she limply moved to the water to get a much needed drink. Natsuki looked down at her reflection and sighed in relief. She was back now, in her own real body. Suddenly there was a popping and crackling noise from behind her; the wolf flicked her ears at the sound before turning to see flames coating one of the wolves' bodies.

"Oi!" called Nao, the red wolf touched by fire, "You did it! We have our true forms again!"

"You mean our divine forms?"

"Yeah, did you just get your memory back too?"

Natsuki nodded, though clearly unsettled by it.

"How did it all slip away from us last time? I mean... right now when I see you like this, and the way I feel during the night, it seems so natural. How was it that I could have forgotten who we were in the last world?"

Before Nao could answer a forceful wind blew across the field, swarming around one of the snow figures. The flakes rose and took a standing shape, accompanied by the element which allowed the wolf to float a few centimetres off the ground.

"We forgot about each other because Kanzaki took our memories," Midori said as she walked towards the other two, "The most fluid form of spirit particles exists as memories right? When he and his "students," shall we say, started to use them as weapons, the first source was our memories. Then of coruse as time went on it started to be taken from the rest of the world."

"And since we were separated we had no way of knowing who to look for," spoke the quiet voice of Akane as she reformed her body out of the earth below them.

Natsuki continued to stare up at the moon. It had all been real, surely, but also like a dream: so insignificant. That old world was gone, Reito along with it; it really was over. They were all waking up with no way of ever going back to it, only able to move forward and put that past life behind them.

"Now what?" she asked aloud, though partly to herself.

"Now we wait," said Nao, "It always happens in the same order, again, led by you, the first of us to awaken."

The midnight furred wolf turned and looked at the two remaining shining white shells. She wanted Shizuru to wake up now and prove that this new world really was what she wished. However Natsuki knew that waiting was the only option, and also that Shizuru would be the last to wake up. She walked with the other three back to the snow piles and lay down, watching them.

They waited in silence for a few hours until the sky above them started to rumble. Each wolf looked up at the overcast clouds that created a soft violet coloured blanket. A few seconds later, steam hissed from Nao's flames as the rain poured over them. It was time for the fifth to wake up. They watched as the water seeped through the snow wolf form, giving Akira a colour reminiscent of a deep ocean, the wolf of water.

She stood up and shook off the remaining droplets before sitting again with the rest.

"I can't believe we had all of our power drained from us..." she said, half shocked, half annoyed, "We're gods who were reduced to being hunted by humans..."

"If only we could just not make them again," sighed Nao as she rested her head back on her paws.

"They are a necessary evil," Natsuki responded solemnly, still watching Shizuru's body, "As Kanzaki said, the world must be ruined before it can begin anew, and we all know that things can only be made once. Even now the balance will shift, it's the way life is made. We are the only beings made from pure spirit particles, the rest comes from the trees, earth and water, giving fractions of life to each being. The most beautiful of waterfalls are made from earthquakes and fissures."

The four gave a short, "mm" in agreement before turning their gaze to the horizon. It was only a matter of time before the sun would rise; the first time in years they would see it again.

A gentle golden glow suddenly appeared in the distance, instantly catching Natsuki's attention. The others quickly turned to her when she stood up in excitement, watching the large star hover over the land. They watched with anticipation as the light hit the final shell. It was the nature of "day" to be last; the end to the night, but at the same time next to it in the cycle, each playing off each other, bound in eternity to be each other's missing half. Finally deep crimson eyes opened as her coat was gleaming the pale golden brown, the wolf touched by day.

"...Natsuki..."

Natsuki's eyes welled up with tears of joy when Shizuru spoke her name. Even if her mind told her that certainly her memory too would be restored, her heart was always one of doubt. She waited no more than a second after Shizuru gained her balance to run up to her and wrap their necks around each other.

"I'm... I'm sorry... I remember everything now! I've always loved you! It just couldn't remember for most of our lives last time but I remember now!"

"I know," came the soft reply, "I did not mind waiting, as long as we were always together it made no difference if you remembered the past. I too forgot about us."

They broke apart and smiled lovingly at each other. Shizuru looked around at the empty world, they were still the only living creatures around at this moment.

"Shall we begin?"

The four elemental wolves bowed respectively to the pair and took their proper places around them and Natsuki and Shizuru faced each other. They took a deep breath, each knowing the next was ready, and together howled out a song; a song that brought life to the planet.

-The End-

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A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! If you liked this story you're probably going to like my next one (still haven't found a title though) so keep an eye out for it. It's dramatic, supernatural and romance mostly so yeah. Again thanks to everyone who read this!


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